Monday, May 25, 2009

Jing Gai (steamed chicken)

Ingredients
Chicken
Hong do (dried red dates)
Black mushrooms
Teem jook (flat "sweet" dried bean curd strips)
Geem toy (goldenrod/lily flower--not sure of the translation)

seasonings
Cornstarch
Whiskey or sherry
Soy sauce
White pepper
Dried orange peel (just tiny bit)
Ginger

Directions
1. Soak the dried ingredients (each should be soaked in a separately).
2. Marinate the chicken with the cornstarch, sherry, soy sauce, white pepper.
3. Break off the hard end of the geem toy, if necessary. Tie the lily buds. Just an overhand knot. I have no idea why you do this, but you do.
4. Cut the teem jook into four pieces or so.
5. Pit the hong do and cut into stripes.
6. Rinse the mushrooms, cut out the stems (you can save them for stock later), and cut into stripes.
7. Cut a slice of ginger into small matchsticks and add to the chickent.
8. Finely mince the orange peel and add it to the chicken. Mom says most people don't add this and you aren't supposed to taste the orange, hence the small pieces. It is supposed to enhance the flavor of the dish.
9. Add the ingredients together and add a bit of the mushroom water.
10. Steam until done.

Notes:
Sorry, no pics, but if I waited until I took pics, I'd never get this posted. No measurements because Mom doesn't cook that way and after I got everything out to soak, I had to add more because she didn't realize the chicken breast I used was so huge. I would have preferred dark meat and I think that's what Mom usually used, but we used what I had on hand. The Chinese names for the food are my attempt at Cantonese.

2 comments:

~TastyTravels~ said...

This sounds sooo good! When are you making it? I'll stop by! =0)

scrapper al said...

You're welcome anytime Holly! I've got an extra bedroom you could call your own.