Noble Consort Chicken (貴妃雞)

A few weeks ago, a recipe in the Joyce Chen Cook Book called "Empress Chicken" caught my eye. I did a little translation of the Chinese name guifei ji, and discovered the real name is a little more interesting. The Chinese word ji means chicken, but guifei is more accurately translated as "noble consort." In Chinese history, a noble consort was one of the emperor's high-ranking concubines, who ranked just below the empress. I found a few websites claiming the dish was named for a specific Tang dynasty concubine, but like most food origin stories, this is almost certainly apocryphal. What the dish has to do with concubines is anyone's guess.

The dish itself is a classic example of a Chinese-style stew, known as hongshao, or "red cooking." I've made a few of these over the last couple of years, but this is the first to make it to the blog. The basic ingredients are soy sauce, sugar, and a selection of seasonings. Seasonings can include ginger, star anise, cinnamon, or bean pastes. This is the first one I've made that included mushrooms, and I found them a terrific addition. I use black mushrooms (dried shiitakes) a lot in various dumplings and stir-fried dishes, but stewing brings them to life in a new way. They basically last forever, so I tend to stock up when we go to Chinese stores. I used Chinese rock sugar in this dish, which is the traditional choice for this type of stew, but white sugar is fine if you can't get it.

Chen calls for 4 wings and 4 legs. Although I like chicken legs, I went with all wings for consistent cooking time. I scaled the whole thing up a bit to use a full package of wings I found at Walmart and played around with the proportions of ingredients based on what I like. The chicken comes out very tender, and the stewing liquid is full of flavor boosted by the mushrooms. That being said, the difficulty I tend to run into with hongshao dishes is that you have a ton of liquid at the end that is too watery to work as a sauce, but as you reduce it down it gets too salty. I don't think this is the traditional choice, but I think corn starch or some other thickening agent is the way to turn it into a sauce. I used 1/2 tablespoon, but I do think it needed more. I plan to experiment more with honghsao dishes, so you can expect to hear more on this soon.

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 lb. chicken wings, tips removed (about 14 wings)
• 1 1/2 oz. dried black mushrooms
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup soup stock
• 1/4 cup dark soy sauce
• 1/4 cup light soy sauce
• 1 oz. rock sugar (or white sugar)
• 2 Tbs. Shaoxing wine or Amontillado
• 2 scallions
• 3 slices ginger
• 3 pieces star anise
• 1 1/2 cup bamboo shoots, drained
• 1/2 Tbs. corn starch (more if a thicker sauce is desired)

Instructions

Use a sharp knife to separate the drumettes from the flats. Cut into the skin, then cut through the joint. There should be little resistance as you should not be cutting through bone. If the tips are still attached, remove in the same way and save for making stock.

Blanching chicken

In a bowl, soak the mushrooms in the warm water for at least 30 minutes. While the mushrooms soak, fill a pot or wok with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the chicken and cook for a few minutes. The water should start to get cloudy. Remove the wings (they will not be fully cooked), drain the water, and wipe out the pan.

Before stewing

Take the mushrooms out of the water, keeping the water in the bowl. Trim off the stems, and cut each mushroom in half. Pour the mushroom water into a wok or other large pan. Add the mushrooms, chicken, and all remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. 

After stewing

Remove the wings and set aside. Turn the heat to high and reduce, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Make a slurry with the corn starch and stir in. Return the wings to the pan, toss to combine, and cook for a few more minutes. Serve with rice.