Try these Chinese Braised Soy Sauce Chicken Legs for an easy one-pot meal. Whole chicken legs are simmered in a sweet and savory soy sauce mixture. Ready in just 45 minutes!
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🍗 About This Recipe
This recipe is inspired by one of the most popular Chinese Takeout dishes: Soy Sauce Chicken. It's a traditional Cantonese dish where whole chicken is cooked in soy sauce, Chinese wine, sugar, star anise, and ginger.
You'll often see it hanging in the windows of barbecue restaurants in Chinatowns across North America.
Chicken Legs Vs. Whole Chicken
In this recipe, I use chicken legs instead of whole chicken. Chicken legs are easier to handle, and you get more juicy dark meat than using a whole chicken.
Plus, braising a whole chicken can be tricky. It requires a larger amount of braising liquid to cover the entire bird.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick & Easy: Everything is made in one pot and only takes 45 minutes to cook!
- Flavorful: The braising liquid is a concentrated mixture of soy sauce, sugar, and Chinese aromatics. Searing the chicken beforehand adds an extra layer of flavor.
- Balanced Sweetness: Combining both rock sugar and brown sugar produces a more balanced sweetness. Brown sugar alone can be overpowering.
🧂 Ingredients
- Whole Chicken Legs: I’m using whole legs. You can also use chicken thighs, drumsticks, or wings.
- Ginger Slices: Adds a warm, aromatic flavor.
- Star Anise: Has a distinctive licorice taste.
- Cinnamon Stick: Infuses a warm, sweet aroma.
- Light Soy Sauce: The sauce's main source of sodium and umami.
- Dark Soy Sauce: Used to give the dish a deep, dark "red" color.
- Shaoxing Wine: Contributes to the umami and complexity of the dish.
- Brown Sugar: Adds a molasses sweetness.
- Rock Sugar: Less sweet than white or brown sugar, commonly used in savory Chinese cooking.
🔪 Instructions
STEP 1: Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken skin-side down, in batches, for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Remove the chicken to a plate, leaving the oil behind.
STEP 2: Reduce the heat to low, add the ginger, star anise, and cinnamon, and stir fry for 30 seconds. Add ⅔ cup of water to deglaze the pan.
STEP 3: Increase the heat to medium and add soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, rock sugar, and brown sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Place the chicken legs back into the pan.
STEP 4: Increase the heat to high to bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, flipping 2-3 times to ensure both sides are coated in the sauce.
💭 Top Tips
- Re-use the leftover braising liquid; it's super flavorful and will develop more flavor as it ages. Use it for tossing with noodles or drizzling over rice. Store it in a plastic container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
Storing: Store leftover Chinese braised chicken in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Reheating: Warm leftovers in the microwave or stovetop over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add two tablespoons of water to loosen the sauce.
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📋 Recipe
Chinese Braised Soy Sauce Chicken Legs
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil
- 4 whole chicken legs (or thighs, drumsticks, or wings)
- 3 slices ginger
- 2 star anise
- 1 3-inch cinnamon stick
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup dark soy sauce
- ½ cup shaoxing wine
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup rock sugar (or use another ¼ cup brown sugar)
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken skin-side down, in batches, for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Remove the chicken to a plate, leaving the oil behind.
- Reduce the heat to low, add the ginger, star anise, and cinnamon, and stir fry for 30 seconds.
- Add ⅔ cup of water to deglaze the pan. Add soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, rock sugar, and brown sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Place the chicken legs back into the pan. Increase the heat to high to bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, flipping 2-3 times to ensure both sides are coated in the sauce.
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