Servings
Font
Back
Best Poached One Pot Chinatown Soy Sauce Chicken Recipe
5 from 303 votes

Best Poached One Pot Chinatown Soy Sauce Chicken Recipe

This Poached One Pot Chinatown Soy Sauce Chicken recipe features a whole chicken gently cooked in a spiced soy sauce broth infused with ginger, scallions, star anise, cinnamon, and other aromatics. The slow poaching method results in tender, flavorful chicken with a glossy skin from vegetable oil glazing. The sauce is a balanced mix of light and dark soy sauces, sweetened with sugar and enriched with rice wine.

Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
2 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 1081 kcal
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese

Ingredients

Sauce
  • 2 teaspoon vegetable oil neutral
  • 2-3 thumb sized ginger peeled and bruised with the back of a knife If you like exact measurements, use at least 30g and up to 60g max, fresh
  • 2 spring onions knotted and bunched Click here for Green onion substitutes, or scallions
  • 3 star anise Lightly bruised to release flavor
  • 2-3 bay leaves Lightly bruised to release flavor, dried
  • cassia cinnamon Lightly bruised to release flavor Optional: 3 black cardamoms, for those who prefer a slight herbal flavour, 2 sticks cinnamon/cassia, 5 cloves
  • cloves Lightly bruised to release flavor Optional: 3 black cardamoms, for those who prefer a slight herbal flavour, 2 sticks cinnamon/cassia, 5 cloves
  • ¾ Cup rosé wine This gives the chicken a very strong wine taste. You can use less if you want the soy sauce notes to be more dominant. Can be substituted with regular shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry or sake
  • 2⅔ Cup soy sauce Use the best quality possible, light
  • ¼ Cup dark soy sauce Use the best quality possible
  • 1½ C granulated sugar Use rock sugar if you can get it- you may need to add a bit more sugar if so as rock sugar is less sweet than white, white
  • 3 C water The sauce should reach up to ¾ of the chicken- if not, DO NOT ADD MORE WATER. Instead make more sauce (from light soy, dark soy, rose wine, sugar and water as per this recipe). If you use a pasta pot, the sauce may be insufficient, as there is some empty space below the strainer- make about 1.25-1.5x the quantity of sauce in this recipe.
Chicken
  • 3.09 lbs chicken 1.4 kg/ 3 lb. Innards removed, skin intact. Optional: use salt to gently rub the chicken skin (don't tear it) then rinse well. Asians like to wash their meat - we often shop at outdoor markets where the produce might be dirtier- although the USDA recommends not doing so, whole
  • 5 t vegetable oil For glazing the cooked chicken to make it look more attractive. Can substitute with maltose or sesame oil if you prefer, neutral
Optional Add-ons
  • 3 egg Don't add too many or it'll clutter the pot and make it difficult to turn the chicken, hard boiled
  • 1 block tofu Cut into ½ inch strips. Don't add too many or it'll clutter the pot and make it difficult to turn the chicken, firm
To serve with
  • 4-6 bowls white rice depending on how hungry you are. Cook as per normal, cooked

Instructions

Making the sauce
    Cup of Yum
  1. Heat your pot or wok on medium. When the oil is hot add the ginger, stir-fry for 30 sec, then add the scallions and stir fry till fragrant (shouldn't take more than a minute).
  2. Add the spices to the pan, stir for 30 sec then add the wine. (It wil sizzle and smell amazing)
  3. Immediately add the light soya, dark soya and sugar, bringing everything to the boil, then lowering the heat and simmering till the sugar is dissolved. (Took me about 5 minutes)
Poaching the chicken
  1. Now it's time to add the chicken, breast-side up! If you're using a pasta pot, place the chicken in the strainer then slowly lower into the pot. If not using, lower the chicken carefully as you don't want the hot sauce to splash onto you. (The liquid should cover at least ¾ the chicken, if not you need to make more sauce)
  2. Bring to the boil. Once boiling, switch off the flame and cover. Start the timer for 15 minutes and go do something else. Make a note of your starting time in case you lose track of which cycle you're on.
  3. When the timer rings after 15 minutes, uncover, baste the chicken, then bring the sauce back to the boil again, switch off, cover and poach for 15 minutes again. Repeat this 4 more times (i.e. you do the boil then steep 15-minute cycle 6 times in total, flipping the chicken carefully after the 3rd cycle.)
  4. After the 6th 15-min cycle, uncover the pot, and leave the chicken in the hot sauce for 1 more hour.
  5. At the end of the hour, remove the chicken from the pot, making sure the liquid in its cavity has drained back into the pot and not onto you, and put it on a plate.
Glazing
  1. Use your fingers or a brush to rub the neutral oil all over the chicken skin.
  2. Serve with white rice, pouring some of the poaching liquid (reheated) around the chicken (or on the side)! The chicken is really tender, so it's super easy to carve up, but you could also use a cleaver to cut into smaller pieces first if you prefer.)

Notes

  • Start cooking about three hours before serving to allow for poaching and resting time.
  • Adjust poaching cycles according to chicken size; smaller chickens require fewer cycles.
  • Use a pasta pot with a strainer if available to ease lowering the chicken into hot broth safely.
  • Glaze the cooked chicken with vegetable oil or maltose for an attractive shiny finish.
  • Optional add-ons like hard-boiled eggs or tofu can be added but avoid overcrowding the pot to allow chicken to turn.
  • Serve with steamed white rice for a complete meal.

Nutrition Information

Calories 1081kcal (54%) Carbohydrates 103g (34%) Protein 62g (124%) Fat 42g (65%) Saturated Fat 10g (50%) Polyunsaturated Fat 13g (76%) Monounsaturated Fat 15g (75%) Trans Fat 0.2g (10%) Cholesterol 266mg (89%) Sodium 9081mg (378%) Potassium 737mg (16%) Fiber 2g (8%) Sugar 89g (178%) Vitamin A 496IU (10%) Vitamin C 4mg (4%) Calcium 210mg (21%) Iron 7mg (39%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 4 people

Amount Per Serving

Calories 1081

% Daily Value*

Calories 1081kcal 54%
Carbohydrates 103g 34%
Protein 62g 124%
Fat 42g 65%
Saturated Fat 10g 50%
Polyunsaturated Fat 13g 76%
Monounsaturated Fat 15g 75%
Trans Fat 0.2g 10%
Cholesterol 266mg 89%
Sodium 9081mg 378%
Potassium 737mg 16%
Fiber 2g 8%
Sugar 89g 178%
Vitamin A 496IU 10%
Vitamin C 4mg 4%
Calcium 210mg 21%
Iron 7mg 39%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.