Spicy Boiled Chicken

Shuizhu Jipian (水煮鸡片)

Thin slices of tender chicken and vegetables are boiled in a sizzling spicy soup with layers of flavor from chili oil, garlic, and cilantro.

Spicy Boiled Chicken is a massive all-in-one dish of meat and veggies – the perfect meal to serve with a bowl of white rice. The sizzling-spicy (麻辣) soup is not drunk, but it, along with the top layer of chili oil, will flavor not only the Chicken and Vegetables but also the rice every time a new piece is added to your bowl.

As with most Spicy Boiled Dishes, the Vegetables listed here are more of a suggestion than a strict rule. Many different types of Vegetables can be cooked and added to this dish. Celery and Bean Sprouts are somewhat standard, but even these can be exchanged for Celtuce or Enoki Mushrooms. Personally, I like the addition of White Beech Mushrooms (海鲜菇), although simple white Button Mushrooms taste equally great.

A unique homestyle version called Spicy Boiled Chicken Slivers (水煮鸡丝) can be made by using nearly identical ingredients and cooking methods as that of Douhua Spicy Boiled Beef (豆花水煮牛肉). Use boneless Chicken Thighs instead of breasts and cut them into slivers. Add the marinade as found below. However, after boiling the Vegetables, boil Douhua before boiling the Chicken. Make the soup in the same manner as with Douhua Spicy Boiled Beef, by using Hotpot Soup Base (火锅底料) instead of pure Sichuan Chili Bean Paste.

Prep Time: 15 min

Cook Time: 10 min

Total Time: 25 min

Serving: 4 people

Ingredients

2 frozen Chicken Breasts (About 500 Grams)

Marinade
1 Tbsp. Shaoxing Rice Wine
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Ground White Pepper
1 Egg White
2 – 4 Tbsp. Corn Starch

Vegetables (About 500 grams Total)
20 – 40 stalks of Chinese Celery (About 100 – 200 grams)
1 - 2 stalks of Garlic Sprouts (蒜苗; About 50 – 100 grams)
1 large handful of White Beech Mushrooms (About 100 – 200 grams)
1 large handful of Bean Sprouts (About 100 – 150 grams)

Aromatics
6 to 10 Pickled Red Chilies
4 cloves of Garlic
1 2-inch block of Ginger

Chili-Oil Toppings
5 Dried Red Chilies
2 cloves of Garlic
1/2 bunch of Cilantro (the Bottom Half with Stalks)
2 – 4 Tbsp. Knife-Cut Chili Flakes
1 tsp. Sesame Seeds

Garnishes
1 clove of Garlic
1 green stalk of Small Scallion (小葱)
1/2 bunch of Cilantro (the Top Half with Leaves)
1 tsp. freshly ground Green Sichuan Pepper

1 Tbsp. Salt (For the Boiling Water)

Peanut Oil

Soup Ingredients
4 Tbsp. Sichuan Chili Bean Paste
8 cups of Water

Seasonings
1 tsp. Light Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp. Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. MSG
1/2 tsp. Chicken Bouillon Powder
1/4 tsp. Ground White Pepper

Directions

1.) Slice the frozen Chicken as thinly as possible, setting the slices into a bowl of warm water.

(Use semi-frozen Chicken as it will be much easier to thinly slice than either fully frozen or completely thawed Chicken. The warm water will help the slices quickly thaw).

2.) Gently massage the Chicken slices in the warm water, drain the water, and then refill the bowl with warm water to fully wash the Chicken. Drain the water again and then squeeze out as much water as possible from the Chicken.

3.) Add the Shaoxing Rice Wine, Salt, and White Pepper to the Chicken slices, mixing thoroughly by hand. Then, mix in the Egg White by hand until almost completely absorbed by the Chicken. Finally, add plenty of Corn Starch until a thick glue-like paste covers every slice of Chicken. Allow the Chicken to marinate while preparing the other ingredients.

(For this dish, the Corn Starch Marinade is often quite thick. A tablespoon of Water can be added, if needed, so that Corn Starch reaches the consistency of glue. Some chefs will even make an ultra-thick Corn Starch Slurry and use that to essentially batter the Chicken).

4.) Prepare the Vegetables, placing them all in a large bowl:

• Celery: Cut the Celery into 2-inch-long batons and place them in a bowl.
• Garlic Sprouts: Smack the stalks flat with the side of a cleaver and then slice them at a 45-degree angle into 2-inch-long batons.
• Mushrooms: Slice the Mushrooms in 1/2.
• Bean Sprouts: Simply wash the Bean Sprouts and shake them dry.

5.) Prepare the Aromatics, placing them all into the same bowl:

• Roughly mince the Pickled Red Chilies.
• Peel and mince the Garlic. (The Garlic for the Chili-Oil Toppings and the Garnishes can also be prepared at this time).
• Peel and mince the Ginger.

6.) Prepare the Chili-Oil Toppings:

• Dried Red Chilies: Snip the Red Chilies into 1/2-inch-pieces and discard most of the seeds. Place Red Chili pieces in a neat pile on the plate.
• Garlic: If not already completed, peel and mince about 2 cloves of Garlic. Then, add them to the plate next to the Red Chili pieces.
• Cilantro: Cut the bunch in half crosswise, set the leafy half aside for the Garnishes, and finely slice the stalks. Place them on the plate next to the Garlic.
• Mala Chili Flakes: Prepare them according to the recipe in the Essentials section of this book if not already made. Place the Mala Chili Flakes in a neat pile on the edge of a plate.
• Sesame Seeds: Add the Sesame Seeds to the plate in a neat pile next to the Chili Flakes.

7.) Prepare the Garnishes, placing them together on a plate:

• Garlic: Peel and finely mince the clove, adding it to the small plate in a neat, little pile.
• Small Scallion: Finely slice the green stalk and set the slices in a neat pile beside the Garlic.
• Cilantro: Roughly chop the top leafy half of the Cilantro bunch, placing it in a pile next to the Scallion.
• Green Sichuan Pepper: Add the Green Sichuan Pepper in a neat pile away from the other Garnishes and keep it dry.

(There should now be 5 main components: the Chicken, the Vegetables, the Aromatics, the Chili-Oil Toppings, and the Garnishes).

8.) Fill a wok or large pot with water, add 1 Tbsp. of Salt, set over high heat, and bring the water to a boil. Add the Vegetables to the boiling water and blanch for about 1 minute until tender-crisp. Remove them with a wire strainer, shake off any excess water, and place them in the center of the serving dish.

(For the Vegetables, I recommend adding them one at a time. First, add the Mushrooms and stir-fry them just a few seconds to remove excess water. Then, add the Celery and, likewise, stir-fry just a bit until much of the water has evaporated. Finally, add the Bean Sprouts and cook just a bit longer until everything is tender-crisp).

9.) Using the same water, reduce the heat to low and add the Chicken slices while stirring constantly to prevent the slices from sticking together. Blanch the Chicken slices for about 1 minute until 80% cooked. Then, pour the Chicken into a wire strainer, discarding the water, and allow the slices to drip dry.

10.) Dry the wok, add 1/4 cup of Peanut Oil, and heat on medium-high. When hot, add the Aromatics and stir-fry them for just a few seconds until fragrant.

11.) Pull the wok away from heat and add the Chili Bean Paste, mixing it for just a few seconds using the residual heat from the wok. Then, return the wok to heat and stir-fry everything just a few seconds until the paste emulsifies with the Oil.

12.) Add the Water to the wok and bring it to a boil on high heat for about 3 minutes. You can optionally use a wire strainer to remove any large pieces of Aromatics for a cleaner soup. Then, add the Seasonings (Light Soy Sauce, Dark Soy Sauce, Salt, MSG, Chicken Bouillon, and Ground White Pepper).

13.) Reduce the heat slightly, keeping the Soup boiling but not violently so. Carefully slide the Chicken slices into the Soup and stir gently, separating the pieces. Boil the Chicken slices for only 15 to 30 seconds until just cooked.

14.) Turn off the heat and use a large slotted spoon to scoop the Chicken slices out of the soup. Arrange the Chicken in the middle of the serving dish on top of the Vegetables and pour the hot Soup in around the sides.

15.) Sprinkle the Chili-Oil Toppings (Mala Chili Flakes, Dried Red Chilies, Cilantro, Garlic, and Sesame Seeds) over the Chicken, , adding the majority to the center of the dish.

(Add these Topping in the order listed. Add most to the center of the dish, because as the hot Oil hits these Toppings, they’ll spread out to the edges of the Soup. The hot Oil will turn these into an extremely fragrant Chili Oil on the surface of the Soup. Bring the dish to the table if wanting to show-off the Oil sizzling on these Toppings).

16.) Quickly switch to a deep skillet, small sauce pan, or clean wok and add 2 cups of Peanut Oil. Heat the Oil until nearly smoking, go quickly to the dish, and ladle the hot Oil over the Chilies and Cilantro until a nice layer of sizzling Oil covers the entire dish.

(Not all of this Oil needs to be used, but at least 1 cup of it should be added. There should be a decent layer of Oil on top of the dish. Everything will sizzle dramatically as the Oil fuses the flavors of the toppings with the soup. Obviously, be safe when adding hot Oil to the dish).

17.) Finally, add the Garnishes (Green Sichuan Pepper, Garlic, Scallion, and Cilantro) in the order listed. Serve along with individual bowls of rice.

 

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