Crispy Skin Squab

Name: Crispy Skin Squab
Total time: 5 h
Ingredients: 2 Plump squab (cleaned, with innards removed); a little Cassia bark; a little Licorice root; a little Star anise; 4g Cloves; 325g Yellow wine; 165g Chopped scallions; 80g Ginger; 80g White soy sauce; 2500g Chicken broth; 80g Refined salt; a little Maltose; a little White vinegar

Squab poached in an aromatic white master stock, glazed with a maltose-vinegar paste, air-dried, and deep-fried until shatteringly crisp and golden.

5 hours

Medium

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Story

Achieving the perfect crackling skin on a squab is a study in patience and heat control. The process begins with a gentle steep in a fragrant white master stock simmered with cassia, licorice, star anise, and cloves, which seasons the meat to the bone while keeping it incredibly succulent. But the true secret to the snap lies in the glaze and the wait. Painted with a mixture of maltose and white vinegar, the birds must hang in a cool, breezy spot for hours until the skin pulls taut and dries completely. Only then does the squab meet the hot oil, instantly blistering into a deep golden brown and sealing in the savory juices. Chopped into pieces and served with a simple dish of pepper salt, every bite delivers a satisfying contrast of shattering crust and tender meat.

Ingredients

Plump squab (cleaned, with innards removed) 2

Cassia bark a little

Licorice root a little

Star anise a little

Cloves 4g

Yellow wine 325g

Chopped scallions 165g

Ginger 80g

White soy sauce 80g

Chicken broth 2500g

Refined salt 80g

Maltose a little

White vinegar a little

Instructions

Make white master stock

Put spices such as cassia bark, licorice, star anise, and cloves into the chicken broth, bring the pot to a boil and simmer for about one hour to make the white master stock.

Soak squab

Place the cleaned squab into the white master stock, immediately turn off the heat, steep for one hour, then remove.

Applying coating liquid

Mix maltose and white vinegar into a paste, coat it on the pigeon skin, and hang it in a cool, airy place to dry for three hours until the pigeon skin is dried.

Deep-frying

Put the wind-dried squab into a raw oil wok and deep-fry until golden brown, then cut into pieces and plate; serve with pepper salt on the side of the plate.