Chinese Sichuan chicken pot
A member of the SCMP family
Directions
0
/0
swiper image

Chinese Sichuan chicken pot

1
hour
15 mins
to soak the chillis
45 mins
to simmer
6
people

Susan says

For several years, gai bo (“chicken pot”) was all the rage at Hong Kong hotpot restaurants. It starts life as one dish – chopped up, bone-in chicken pieces with a thick, complex sauce seasoned with lots of spices that you might not normally associate with Chinese food, but it ends up as something else. After most of the meat has been eaten, hot broth is stirred into the sauce remaining in the pot, which is then used to poach raw ingredients.

Don’t let the long list of ingredients intimidate you: this dish is easy to cook and doesn’t require any special techniques.

The chicken should be cut through the bone into bite-size pieces for stir-fries; you can do this yourself, or have the butcher do it for you.

Behind the spice and numbness of Sichuan dishes, lies a dark and bloody history of wars and conflicts. Listen more on Eat Drink Asia podcast about this cuisine of diversity and excitement.

Buy Sichuan peppercorns on the Goldthread shop.

Ingredients
For the chicken pot
1
fresh chicken, about 1.2kg (2lb 10oz), cut into pieces
30g (1oz)
Chinese chilli sauce
60g (2oz)
doubanjiang (Sichuan chilli soybean paste)
60g (2oz)
oyster sauce
60g (2oz)
chu hou paste (soybean and garlic paste)
30ml (2tbsp)
light soy sauce
20ml (4tsp)
sake or Chinese rice wine (or substitute dry sherry)
15g (3½tsp)
granulated sugar
5g (1tsp)
fine sea salt
1 tbsp
cornstarch
8-12
dried bird’s-eye chillies, or use another type of hot dried chilli
1tbsp
Sichuan peppercorns
1-2
cinnamon sticks, depending on size
1
whole nutmeg
3
star anise
4
green cardamom pods
½tsp
whole black peppercorns
½tsp
whole fennel seeds
½tsp
whole cumin seeds
8
garlic cloves, peeled
8
shallots, peeled
30g (1oz)
peeled fresh ginger
4-6
fresh red bird’s-eye chillies, or another type of spicy chilli, such as serrano
3
Chinese celery stalks, or use half a stalk of regular celery, sliced lengthwise into several pieces
4-6
spring onions
fresh coriander (cilantro) sprigs
cooking oil, as necessary
For the hotpot
1.5 litres (1½ quart)
unsalted chicken broth, preferably homemade (or use water)
meat, seafood and vegetable hotpot ingredients of your choice
For the hotpot sauce
soy sauce
sesame oil
sesame paste
chilli oil
crushed peanuts
chillies
garlic
spring onions
fresh coriander (cilantro)
Directions

instructions image

Make the chilli paste mixture. In a bowl, mix together the chilli sauce, doubanjiang, oyster sauce, chu hou paste, soy sauce, rice wine, sugar and salt. Put the cut-up chicken in a bowl and pour about half of the chilli-paste mixture over the meat. Mix well so the chicken pieces are evenly coated. Set aside the chicken and remaining chilli-paste mix­ture while preparing the other ingredients.

1/8

Pull the stem ends from the dried chillies and shake out and discard as many seeds as possible. Put the chillies in a bowl, cover with hot water and leave for about 15 minutes, then drain before blotting them with paper towels.

2/8

instructions image

Remove and discard as many black seeds as possible from the Sichuan peppercorns, leaving behind the husks. Loosely wrap the nutmeg in a paper towel and put it on a cutting board. Hit the nutmeg with a meat mallet to break it into two or three pieces. Break each star anise into two pieces. Cut the garlic cloves in half. Place the chunk of ginger on the cutting board and hit it with the meat mallet to lightly crush it. 

3/8

instructions image

Sprinkle the cornstarch over the marinated chicken and mix well. Pour cooking oil to a depth of about 8cm (3⅜inch) in a wok (or use a wide, deep pan and add oil to the depth of about 4cm [1½inch]) and heat to 180ºC (350ºF). Fry the chicken pieces in batches for about a minute - just long enough to set the exterior but not to fully cook the meat. Drain the chicken on paper towels.

4/8

instructions image

Heat 30ml (2tbsp) of cooking oil in a large Chinese clay pot that holds about two litres (two quarts). When the oil is hot, add the dried chillies, Sichuan peppercorns, cinnamon stick, nutmeg, star anise, cardamom pods, whole black peppercorns, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, garlic, shallots, ginger and fresh chillies. Cook, stirring frequently, until the spices are toasted and fragrant. 

5/8

instructions image

Add the remaining chilli-paste mixture and stir constantly for about 30 seconds. Add the chicken pieces and about 120ml (½cup) of water. Bring to the boil and stir well to combine. Lower the heat then cover the pot with the lid. Simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the chicken is cooked through. The sauce should lightly coat the chicken, but shouldn’t be entirely dry; if the meat is in danger of sticking to the bottom and sides of the pot, stir in more water. Taste the sauce and correct the seasonings, if necessary.

6/8

instructions image

Cut the Chinese celery and spring onions into 3cm (1¼inch) lengths. Stir them and the fresh coriander (cilantro) sprigs into the pot and simmer until wilted. Serve the chicken pot with hot steamed rice and a dish of stir-fried vegetables.

7/8

After eating most of the chicken, add about 1.5 litres of unsalted chicken broth (or water) to the pot and place it over a portable burner. Bring to the boil, then serve with an array of raw meats, seafood, vegetables, noodles and other hotpot ingredients. Let your guests mix their own dipping sauce from ingredi­ents that include soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame paste, chilli oil, crushed peanuts and chopped fresh chillies, garlic, spring onions and coriander (cilantro) sprigs.

8/8

Liking this recipe?
Now you can save the recipe you into your own collection.
Welcome to SCMP Cooking

We'll be showing you a whole range of Asian dishes for you to cook at home. We're starting small but are thinking (and planning) big - we'll be adding recipes to the site every week, and will expand to include international dishes, cooking videos, interviews with famous chefs and much more. Be sure to sign up to receive our weekly newsletter!