Chinese · Jiangnan · appetizer
Drunken Chicken (Zui Ji)
Drunken Chicken (Zui Ji) reads salinity 4.8, sweetness 4.5 and allium 3.7 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Chinese · Jiangnan appetizer, about 24 hr 45 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.
The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10
- Umami & Savory — 5.3 / 10
- Sweet & Fruity — 5.0 / 10
- Sour & Bright — 1.9 / 10
- Bitter & Earthy — 1.2 / 10
- Rich & Fat — 1.3 / 10
- Aromatic & Spice — 4.2 / 10
The measured notes (of 18)
Salinity 4.8 · Sweetness 4.5 · Allium 3.7 · Funk & Ferment 3.1 · Herbaceous 2.8 · Warm Spice 2.7 · Umami 1.6 · Sourness 1.5 · Fruity 1.5 · Citrus 1.4 · Richness 1.3 · Floral 1.1 · Earthy 1.1 · Bitterness 0.7
What's in it (12)
- chicken — 400 g
- water — 2000 g
- fresh ginger — 30 g
- spring onions — 330 g
- salt — 15 g
- shaoxing wine — 400 g
- strained chicken poaching broth — 250 g
- salt — 10 g
- caster sugar — 4 g
- dried goji berries — 1000 g
- chinese rice wine lees — 22 g
- sichuan pepper — 5 g
Time & effort: about 24 hr 45 min (35 min active) · effort: medium
Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 20.6 kcal, 1.8 g protein, 0.7 g fat, 1.3 g carbs
Dietary: Contains meat — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.
How it's cooked (6 steps)
- Bring the water to the boil with the bruised ginger, spring onions and poaching salt. Lower in the chicken legs, return to the barest tremble and poach 18 to 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave them in the pot 15 minutes more.
- Lift the legs into iced water for 10 minutes. This sets the skin and gives the gelatinous layer beneath it the slippery texture the dish is judged on. Drain and pat dry.
- Strain 250 ml of the broth, skim it and cool it completely. Do not use it warm or you will cook the wine off.
- Mix the cold broth with the Shaoxing wine, brine salt, sugar, Sichuan pepper, ginger slices, goji berries and rice wine lees. Taste it: assertively winey and just too salty on its own, because the chicken will absorb a good deal of both.
- Submerge the chicken in the brine in a tight container, cover and refrigerate 24 to 48 hours, turning once. Twenty-four hours is pleasant, forty-eight is the real thing.
- Chop through the bone into 3 cm pieces, arrange on a cold plate and spoon a little of the brine over. Serve cold, as one of the first dishes of a Jiangnan meal.
Dishes with a similar flavor shape
- West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy (西湖醋鱼) — Chinese
- Jambon Persillé de Bourgogne — French · Burgundy
- Gardiane de Taureau — French · Languedoc
- Shakshuka with Feta and Crusty Bread — Middle Eastern
- Juane — Peruvian
Keep reading: what salinity, sweetness, allium mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.
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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.