Braised Chicken Chunks is a classic home-style dish. The chicken is braised until tender and packed with savory flavor. With potatoes or mushrooms soaking up the rich sauce, it’s incredibly satisfying and perfect with steamed rice.
🌴 Ingredients:
· 500g chicken thighs (cut into chunks)
· 1 potato (cut into chunks, optional)
· A few dried shiitake mushrooms (soaked, optional)
🌴 Aromatics:
· 3 slices of ginger
· 1 stalk of scallion (cut into segments)
· 4-5 cloves of garlic (smashed)
· 1 star anise
· 1 small piece of cinnamon stick
· 2 dried red chilies (optional)
🌴 Seasonings:
· 3 tbsp light soy sauce (about 30ml)
· 1 tbsp dark soy sauce (about 10ml, for color)
· 1 tbsp oyster sauce (about 10ml)
· 2 tbsp cooking wine (about 20ml, for blanching)
· 1 small piece of rock sugar (about 15g, for color and flavor)
· Salt, to taste
· Cooking oil, as needed
🌴 Instructions:
- Blanch the Chicken
Place the chicken in a pot of cold water with ginger, scallion, and cooking wine. Bring to a boil, skim off the foam, and rinse the chicken with warm water. ⚠️ Note: Never rinse with cold water, or the meat will contract and become tough. - Caramelize the Sugar
Heat a little oil in a pan, add the rock sugar, and stir over low heat until it melts and turns a dark amber color. Immediately add the chicken and stir-fry to coat each piece. ⚠️ Note: Never use high heat to caramelize the sugar, as it burns easily and turns bitter. I’ve tried it, and the sugar burned instantly, ruining the dish. - Add Ingredients and Simmer
Add the ginger, scallion, garlic, star anise, cinnamon, and dried chilies, and stir-fry until fragrant. Add the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and oyster sauce, and mix well. Pour in hot water to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium-low heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. ⚠️ Note: Always use hot water; cold water will toughen the chicken. - Add Potatoes and Reduce
Add the potatoes and soaked mushrooms, and simmer for another 10 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Season with salt to taste, then turn to high heat to reduce the sauce until thickened. ⚠️ Note: Add salt at the end; adding it too early will toughen the chicken.
💡 More Hearty and Flavorful Chicken Dishes:
If you enjoy these braised chicken chunks, you should also try my [Big Plate Chicken] for another incredibly savory and satisfying dish.
Want to explore more? Check out my full [Home-style Dishes] category!
💡 Tips:
The key to Braised Chicken Chunks is “tender meat, rich sauce, glossy color.” Blanch the chicken in cold water and rinse with warm water. Caramelize the sugar over low heat to prevent burning. Use hot water for braising. Add salt at the end so the chicken becomes tender.
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