Easy and Delicious Steamed Chicken with Pickled Plums

This is another humble yet delicious dish from my heritage. It is often referred to as ga heung cai “家乡菜” which is translated to home cooking. You will notice that most home style dishes are flavourful and saucey, and would require to be eaten with loads of rice.

In this recipe, we use pickled preserved plums in a jar. These plums are pickled with vinegar and salt. They are usually called suanmeizi “酸梅子” – sour plums. These are generally made from unripe plum fruits, and the result is a intensely sour and salty flavour.

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Steamed Chicken with Pickled Plums

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Marinade: 1/2 lb Chicken Thighs, boneless and skinless, diced into bite-sized pieces 2 Teaspoon Soy Sauce 1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce 1 Teaspoon Shao Hsing Wine 1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil 1/8 Teaspoon White Pepper 2 Teaspoon Tapioca Starch 1/8 Teaspoon Chicken Essence (optional) 1 pickled plum, crushed with back of spoon (koon chun brand) 20 Grams of Ginger, julienned 1 Thai Red Chili, Deseeded and diced (optional) 1 Teaspoon Green Onion, diced

Directions:

1. Prepare the steamer: fill the wok or large pot with water and bring the water to boil over high heat. Meanwhile, dice the chicken into 3/4″ bite-size pieces

2. Mix the chicken with the marinade ingredients in the steam-safe dish.

3. Add the ginger to the chicken and mix well.

4. Top the chicken with the red chili.

5. Place the steel rack, steam basket, or bamboo steamer over top of the wok or pot. Place the steam-safe dish on the steaming rack, cover with a lid, and steam for 30 minutes on medium-high heat.

6. Remove the dish from the steamer, and garnish with green onions. This dish is best served with rice as it is quite flavourful.

#chinese #酸梅子 #家乡菜 #水梅