Chicken with shaoxing wine, crisp radishes and pickled ginger
A dish that highlights the importance of texture. The sweet chicken is very good against the clean crunch of the radishes and daikon but – to really appreciate it – you should soak the cut radishes in iced water, as that really firms them up. Use Amontillado sherry if you don’t have Shaoxing wine and feel free to add sliced chillies at the same time as the ginger and garlic, if you want some heat as well.
Ingrediënten
FOR THE CHICKEN
- 8 skinless boneless chicken thighs
- 115 g 4oz daikon
- 130 g 4¾oz radishes
- 2 tbsp groundnut oil
- 3 cm 1¼in root ginger, peeled and shredded
- 6 garlic cloves very finely sliced
- 50 ml 2fl oz Shaoxing wine
- 2½ tbsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- juice of 1 lime
- 2 spring onions finely chopped
- 50 g 1¾oz pickled ginger (pink or beige, though pink looks better)
- 2 tsp black or white sesame seeds
- about 2 tbsp micro leaves if available (purple amaranth, cress or pea shoots)
FOR THE MARINADE
- 3 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 3 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- pepper
Instructies
- Cut the chicken thighs into chunks (about 2.
- 5cm/1in square) and put into a bowl with the marinade ingredients.
- Mix everything together, cover with cling film and put in the fridge to marinate for two hours if you have time, 30 minutes if you’re pushed.
- Bring to room temperature before cooking.
- Peel the daikon and cut it into thin batons.
- Trim the radishes and slice them lengthways.
- Drop these into a bowl of ice cubes and water and leave to crisp up.
- Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wok or sauté pan until it’s really hot, then brown the chicken in three batches, removing the browned chicken as it’s ready and putting it into a bowl.
- It’s really important to get a good colour on the chicken.
- Add the rest of the oil to the pan, heat it, then add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry until the garlic is pale gold.
- Deglaze the wok or pan with the Shaoxing wine, then return the browned chicken.
- Season generously with pepper.
- Cook for another four minutes, stirring from time to time, then add the soy sauce, honey and 75ml (2½fl oz) of water and cook for another four minutes, tossing the contents of the pan around, until you have enough liquid to just coat the chicken and the chicken is cooked through.
- Add the lime juice and taste for seasoning.
- Put the chicken into a warmed broad, shallow serving bowl.
- Drain the daikon and radish and quickly pat dry in a clean tea towel.
- Throw these over the chicken with the spring onions, picked ginger and sesame seeds.
- Serve immediately, sprinkled with the micro leaves (if using).
