Dish of Chicken with Chestnuts
(click to enlarge)

Chicken with Chestnuts


China - Jiangnan   -   Ban Li Shao Ji
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 4 w/rice
***
1-1/2 hrs
Yes		 A chicken stew recipe with a complex of contrasting flavors and textures: tender chicken, crisp bamboo shoots, savory mushrooms and sweet chestnuts. It reheats well, so can be made in advance.

1
6
8
3
1
2
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2
2
2
2
1
1/2
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2
1
#

oz
oz
in

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T
t
T
c
t
t
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T
t
Chicken meat (1)
Black Mushroom (2)
Chestnuts (3)
Bamboo Shoots (4)
Ginger root
Scallions
-- Sauce
Soy Sauce
Soy Sauce, Dark
Rice Wine (5)
Stock, Chicken
Sugar (6)
Salt
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Oil
Sesame Oil, dark
Prep   -   (20 min)
  1. Cut CHICKEN into bite size chunks about 1/2 inch thick.
  2. Soak MUSHROOMS 1/2 hour or more in warm water. Wring out, remove stems and cut into quarters.
  3. Thaw CHESTNUTS (see Note-3).
  4. Slice BAMBOO SHOOTS a bit less than 1/4 inch thick. Mix with Chestnuts.
  5. Slice GINGER about 1/8 inch thick. Cut SCALLION whites from the greens, crush lightly and mix with Ginger.
  6. Cut Scallion Greens about 1 inch long and set aside.
  7. Mix all Sauce items.
RUN   -   (1hr)
  1. In a wok or spacious sauté pan heat Oil and fry Ginger mix until aromatic.
  2. Push Ginger mix to the side and add Chicken. Fry tumbling now and then until very lightly colored. Be careful the fond adhering to the pan doesn't get burned.
  3. Stir in Chestnut mix, Mushrooms and Sauce mix. Bring to a boil, scraping up fond adhearing to the pan. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes or until Chicken is tender.
  4. If desired, uncover and keep at a light boil to reduce the sauce to the consistency you want. It should still be fairly liquid if serving with rice.
  5. Stir in Scallion Greens for about 1 minute, then take off heat and stir in Sesame Oil.
  6. Serve hot.
NOTES:

  1. Chicken:

      Weight is for skinless, boneless. Use thigh/leg meat for the best flavor and texture.

  2. Black Mushrooms:

      These are dried Shiitakes, and can be found in almost any market these days. For details see our Shiitake Mushroom page.

  3. Chestnuts:

      Weight is for cooked and peeled. I strongly suggest using frozen chestnuts, found in Asian markets. The chestnuts we get here in California are from China and Korea, and I have tried every peeling method and trick on the Internet without success.

  4. Bamboo Shoots:

      Get them in the vacuum pack bags - much superior to canned, which have to be par boiled to remove the tinny taste.

  5. Rice Wine:

      Use a good, drinkable Chinese rice wine, not that horrid salted "cooking" version. If you don't have this, use a Dry Sherry. Sake is made from rice but is not considered a good substitute. For details see our Chinese Rice Wine page.

  6. Sugar:

      Asians go wild with sugar, more sweet than appropriate for Western tastes, as well as for health. I have called for 1/3 the amount in the pattern recipe, and its plenty for me.
  7. 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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