Chinese Cold Boiled Chicken

By David Tanis

Chinese Cold Boiled Chicken
Jim Wilson/The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour 20 minutes
Rating
4(98)
Comments
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This is an easy dish, put together in minutes and abandon for an hour on a low flame. If you do it in the morning, it will be ready for lunch. But it can also be cooked a day ahead. Its flavors deepen with a night in the fridge. The recipe in three sentences: Season the thighs with salt and pepper, ginger, star anise and scallions, cover with water and simmer slowly. Remove the chicken, reduce the cooking liquid, then pour it back over the meat. Wait until it’s well chilled. To serve, sprinkle the ice-cold jelly-clad chicken with sesame oil, scallions, cilantro and jalapeño slices. Give it a squeeze of lime. If you want something extra, add cucumber, avocado and crisp lettuce leaves. Or take off the skin, shred the chicken and have it with cold noodles.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings
  • 6large bone-in chicken thighs
  • Salt
  • pepper
  • 1two-inch piece of ginger, peeled and thickly sliced
  • 4garlic cloves, sliced
  • 3star anise
  • 4scallions, 2 whole and 2 slivered
  • 3tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • 1jalapeño, thinly sliced, optional
  • 2tablespoons roasted sesame oil
  • Lime wedges, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

487 calories; 37 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 15 grams monounsaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 33 grams protein; 523 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Season the thighs generously with salt and pepper. Put them in a pot and barely cover with cold water. Add the ginger, garlic, star anise and the two whole scallions. Bring to a gentle boil and skim any rising foam. Turn the heat to very low, cover, and cook at a bare simmer for 1 hour.

  2. Step 2

    Transfer the thighs to a bowl to cool. Skim the fat from the surface of the cooking liquid. Over high heat, reduce the liquid by half, about 10 minutes, then strain it over the thighs. Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.

  3. Step 3

    To serve, arrange the chicken on a platter, leaving some of the jellied broth clinging to the thighs. (Alternatively, the skin may be removed and discarded, and the meat pulled from the bone and shredded.) Lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with slivered scallions, cilantro and, if you like, jalapeño slices. Drizzle with sesame oil and surround with lime wedges.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
98 user ratings
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Comments

MRG

This is like a recipe a native Hong Kongese taught me in the 70s. Main difference is cooking time, probably because of health concerns (bacterial growth): use whole chicken or pieces; bring to boil in water with similar flavorings (don't omit star anise!); simmer only a few min (~longer if pink at the end); then off heat and rest covered until at room temp; refrigerate. Succulent, juicy, flavorful. Dip in mixture to taste with: black vinegar/sugar/sesame oil/chopped cilantro, ginger, etc.

Gail G.

This is a great dish. A key part of serving it is a dipping sauce, though! Soy, scallions, sesame oil...

Alan

Just made this. I am not good at skimming fat from hot broth, so I poured broth into a fat separater jug and cooled it for two hours in fridge before pouring over chicken that was also cooling.

Wendy

The recipe takes so little effort, yet the result is delicious, healthful, and a crowd pleaser. Thanks for the recipe; found it here in 2011 and it is fun to make and great to serve.

jax

Oh and if you hav chicken skins, don’t toss them! Flatten them out on a parchment lined sheet pan, season with salt and pepper, top with another parchment and a second sheet pan to keep them flat. Bake at 300F for one hour (conveniently the same time that the chicken cooks) and revel in the incredibly crisp and crunchy chicken skin cracker that results. Cook’s treat, or share with people you REALLY love.

jax

This has entered the supper canon for us, except we have it hot with the broth on the side, sort of in the style of Hainanese chicken rice.

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