Recently, I had a craving for soy sauce chicken, but I did not want to deal with an entire chicken, so I used chicken legs instead. I arranged everything in a Dutch oven and cooked it over low heat for 30 minutes. The chicken turned out really good and it was much quicker than cooking a whole bird.
Pair this with my Shiitake Mushroom Stir-fry for an easy weeknight dinner!
๐ About This Recipe
Soy Sauce-Braised Chicken is one of my favorite Chinese takeout dishes. It is a traditional Cantonese dish where chicken is cooked in soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine, sugar, star anise, and ginger.
In my version, I use chicken legs instead of whole chicken. It is much easier and requires fewer ingredients because you do not need as much liquid to cover chicken legs. Plus, you get more dark meat, which is the tastiest part of the chicken.
Another thing I do differently is I am searing the chicken before braising it. It adds a little color and texture to the skin and helps the sauce stick to it better.
๐ง Ingredients
- Chicken: I am using whole chicken legs, but you can also use any skin-on, bone-in chicken, such as chicken thighs, drumsticks, or wings.
- Seasonings: Soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, rock sugar, and brown sugar.
- Aromatics: Ginger slices, star anise, and cinnamon.
๐ช Instructions
STEP 1: Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken skin-side down for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. I could only fit two chicken legs in my Dutch oven so I had to do it in two batches. Remove the chicken to a plate, leaving the leftover oil in the pan.
STEP 2: Reduce the heat to low, add the ginger, star anise, and cinnamon, and cook for 30 seconds. Add โ cup of water to deglaze the pan.
STEP 3: Increase the heat to medium. Add the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, brown sugar, and rock sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Return the chicken legs to the pan.
STEP 4: Increase the heat to high to bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through to ensure both sides are cooked in the sauce.
If you like the sauce thicker, you can remove the chicken from the pan and boil the sauce for 5-10 minutes. It should thicken to a glaze, and then you can brush the chicken with it.
๐ญ Recipes Notes + Tips
- Re-use the leftover braising liquid. You can store it in a plastic container in the freezer for up to 3 months. It is super flavorful and you can toss it with noodles or drizzle it over rice.
- Tip from my grandma: In China, chefs usually pour boiling hot water over the chicken to tighten the skin and give it a more polished look. It is mostly for appearance, but my grandma swears it makes the chicken taste better. If you want to give it a try, place the chicken on a rack over a tray and pour boiling water over it.
๐ 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
- ยฝ cup soy sauce
- ยผ cup dark soy sauce
- ยฝ cup shaoxing wine
- ยผ cup brown sugar
- โ cup rock sugar (or use another ยผ cup brown sugar)
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken skin-side down for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. I could only fit two chicken legs in my Dutch oven so I had to do it in two batches. Remove the chicken to a plate, leaving the leftover oil in the pan.
- Reduce the heat to low, add the ginger, star anise, and cinnamon, and cook for 30 seconds. Add โ cup of water to deglaze the pan.
- Add the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, brown sugar, and rock sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
- Place the chicken legs back into the pan. Increase the heat to high to bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through to ensure both sides are cooked in the sauce.
Leave a Reply