Beggar's Chicken
A classic traditional signature dish from Jiangsu province, Beggar's Chicken is roasted encased in wine-infused mud, locking in its pure, authentic flavor, with golden skin and juicy, tender meat.
Ingredients
Chicken (hen) (remove feet and claws, clean cavity from under ribs, break leg, wing, and neck bones with the back of a knife)
1
Shrimp
to taste
Chicken gizzards, diced
to taste
Lean pork
to taste
Cooked ham, diced
to taste
Rehydrated shiitake mushrooms, diced
to taste
Dried large shrimp
to taste
Pork caul fat
to taste
Fresh lotus leaves
to taste
Parchment paper
to taste
Wine jar clay (for wrapping and roasting)
to taste
Shaoxing wine (for marinating)
to taste
Fine salt
to taste
Soy sauce (for marinating)
to taste
Scallion segments (for frying to release aroma)
to taste
Minced ginger
to taste
Cloves (ground)
to taste
Star anise (ground)
to taste
Sand ginger powder
to taste
Sesame oil
to taste
Rendered lard (for stir-frying)
to taste
Caster sugar (for stir-frying filling)
to taste
Instructions
1
Marinating
Clean the chicken by removing the feet and claws and cleaning the cavity from under the ribs. Use the back of a knife to break the leg, wing, and neck bones, then place the chicken into a jar. Add soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, and fine salt, and marinate for 1 hour.
2
Seasoning
Remove the chicken. Grind the cloves and star anise into powder, combine with the sand ginger powder, and rub the mixture evenly all over the chicken.
3
Stir-frying the filling
Heat rendered lard in a wok. Fry the scallions and ginger to release aroma, then remove and discard them. Add the shrimp, diced chicken gizzards, diced shiitake mushrooms, pork, diced ham, and dried large shrimp, and toss briefly. Add Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and caster sugar, and stir-fry until just cooked through. Let cool, then stuff into the chicken cavity.
4
Wrapping and roasting
(The original text is truncated; the steps for wrapping the chicken in lotus leaves, coating it with clay, and roasting are missing.)
