Dish of 3 Cup Chicken
(click to enlarge)

Three Cup Chicken


Taiwan / China   -   San Bei Ji
Makes:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 1-2/3 #
***
1-1/3 hrs
Yes		 A very flavorful recipe, particularly popular in Taiwan. As seen in the notes, there are variations. See also Comments.

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T
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Chicken meat (1)
-- Aromatics
Ginger Root
Garlic
Scallions
Chili Flake (2)  
-- Sauce
Sugar (4)
Rice Wine (5)
Soy Sauce, Dark (6)  
Soy Sauce
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Thai Basil (3)
Sesame Oil, dark
Sesame Oil (more)
Prep   (40 min)
  1. Cut CHICKEN into bite size pieces.
  2. Slice GINGER crosswise into fairly thin disks. Peel GARLIC CLOVES and crush moderately. Cut SCALLIONS (white and green) into about 1 inch Lengths. Mix all Aromatic items.
  3. Mix all Sauce items.
  4. Pull BASIL LEAVES from the stems. Let soak in cold Water until needed.
RUN   (40 min)
  1. In a wok or spacious sauté pan, heat 2 T Sesame Oil over medium flame and stir in Aromatics mix. Fry stirring just until aromatic, around 2 minutes.
  2. Turn heat up, then stir in 1 T Sesame Oil and Chicken. Fry stirring over high flame until Chicken has lost it's raw color and all exuded water has evaporated. Some recipes continue to fry until the chicken is lightly browned.
  3. Stir in Sauce mix. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until Chicken is tender.
  4. Remove lid. Turn up heat and reduce Sauce, stirring often, until it coats the Chicken well.
  5. Turn off heat. Stir in drained Basil.
  6. Serve hot with plenty of steamed long grain rice.
NOTES:

  1. Chicken:

      Weight is for skinless, boneless chicken. I always use thigh and/or leg meat because it is moist and flavorful compared to the cardboard chicken breasts produced in North America. Note that some recipes call for a pile of Chicken Wings, and others for various joints, whole or cut, so you can use your own preference.

  2. Thai Basil:

      The amount given is "to taste", because amounts called for in legitimate recipes vary from "2 cups" to "Small Bunch". Thai Purple Basil is specified, but you may have to use some other Basil. The store I shopped at had only "Thai Lemon Basil" which is too weak in flavor, so I used a fairly large bunch of Purple Basil, which is a decent compromise between Thai Basil and Italian Basil, though much more "purple" than the Thai. If no Basil can be had, chop up a couple Scallions and use that instead. For details see our Basils page.

  3. Chili Flake:

      Use your own discretion here. Some recipes call for 2 whole dried chilis, capped or broken in half, and a few call for fresh green chilis. I call for Chili Flake because it can most reliably be adjusted by hotness and amount as needed for those dining on the dish.

  4. Sugar:

      Again, legitimate recipes call this out differently. I prefer a lightly refined sugar or light brown sugar. Use a little more if not using Dark Soy Sauce, which is relatively sweet.

  5. Rice Wine:

    Use a good drinkable Chinese rice wine. The cooking versions are heavily salted and not that good to start with. If you don't have the rice wine use a dry sherry. Sake, though made from rice, is not considered a good substitute. For details see our Chinese Rice Wine page.

  6. Soy Sauce, Dark

      This Soy Sauce is mostly to give the dish a dark color. If you don't want it dark, replace with regular Soy Sauce. It also provides a little sweetness, but not a lot. For details see our Soy Sauce page.

  7. Comments

      The name of this dish comes from the traditional formula "1 cup Sesame Oil, 1 cup Rice Wine, 1 cup Soy Sauce". This has confused many writers who presume our measuring cups. It probably refers to tiny Chinese tea cups, which amount would be about right. Most cooks today adjust the "3 cups" to differing ratios.
  8. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch ar=as required tt=to taste
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