Salt and Pepper Eight-Treasure Chicken

Name: Salt and Pepper Eight-Treasure Chicken
Ingredients: 1 piece (about 1000g) fat tender hen (whole deboned, marinated); 25g glutinous rice (washed and cooked through); 25g fresh peas (blanched and shelled); 25g lotus seeds (peeled and cored, steamed until soft); 25g coix seed (job's tears) (washed and soaked until plump, steamed until soft); 25g euryale seed (washed and soaked until plump, steamed until soft); 10g dried baby shrimp (soaked until plump and diced); 15g ham (diced); 15g xiangjun (shiitake mushroom) (diced); 15g cooking wine; 5g salt; 10g soy sauce; 15g egg white; 15g bean starch (mixed with egg white); 500g vegetable oil; 10g sesame oil; 15g Sichuan pepper salt (served in a side dish)

A whole deboned chicken stuffed with a savory eight-treasure filling, steamed and then deep-fried to golden perfection with crispy skin and tender meat.

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Story

This impressive banquet dish is a true celebration of traditional culinary craftsmanship. Through a meticulous two-stage cooking process of steaming and deep-frying, the bird achieves a stunningly golden, crispy exterior that gives way to incredibly juicy meat and a deeply flavorful center. It remains an absolute showstopper destined to be the centerpiece of any festive gathering.

Ingredients

fat tender hen (whole deboned, marinated) 1 piece (about 1000g)

glutinous rice (washed and cooked through) 25g

fresh peas (blanched and shelled) 25g

lotus seeds (peeled and cored, steamed until soft) 25g

coix seed (job's tears) (washed and soaked until plump, steamed until soft) 25g

euryale seed (washed and soaked until plump, steamed until soft) 25g

dried baby shrimp (soaked until plump and diced) 10g

ham (diced) 15g

xiangjun (shiitake mushroom) (diced) 15g

cooking wine 15g

salt 5g

soy sauce 10g

egg white 15g

bean starch (mixed with egg white) 15g

vegetable oil 500g

sesame oil 10g

Sichuan pepper salt (served in a side dish) 15g

Instructions

Process Main and Auxiliary Ingredients

Slaughter and clean the hen, then completely bone it while keeping it whole. After washing, rub with cooking wine and salt, then marinate for later use. Blanch the fresh peas and remove their shells. Boil the glutinous rice until it is cooked through to the center. Soak the lotus seeds, coix seeds, and gorgon nuts until swollen, then steam until completely soft and mushy. Soak the dried shrimp until swollen, and dice them together with the ham and mushrooms.

Stuffing

Mix the prepared glutinous rice, peas, lotus seeds, coix seeds, gorgon nuts, dried shrimp, ham, and mushrooms, add salt, and blend evenly. Stuff the mixture into the chicken's abdominal cavity through the neck incision, and seal the opening with a bamboo skewer.

Steaming

First, blanch the chicken in boiling broth for a few minutes, then remove. Fold the chicken wings over the back, tuck the chicken head, place it into a steaming bowl, and steam in a steamer for about two hours (until a bamboo chopstick can pierce through the chicken wing).

Deep-Frying and Slicing

Remove and let it cool, wipe away any surface moisture, and evenly coat with soy sauce and an egg white and starch batter. Place a wok over high heat, add oil, and heat to 180°C. Deep-fry the chicken until it turns golden brown, then remove. Drizzle with sesame oil, remove the bamboo skewer, and use a knife to score the chicken breast and belly into diamond-shaped pieces (cutting just deep enough to break the skin). Serve alongside a small dish of Sichuan pepper salt.