This Chinese Steamed Chicken Breast recipe combines chicken breasts with a fragrant ginger scallion sauce. It's healthy, flavorful, and ready in just one hour. It's perfect for a busy weeknight or can be made ahead and served cold on a warm day.
Can't get enough of steamed dishes? Try my Chinese Steamed Fish with ginger and spring onions next!
This Chinese Steamed Chicken Breast recipe is a must-have in your cooking arsenal. It's quick, simple, and delicious. It takes just one hour to put together. All you have to do is marinate the chicken and then steam it. While it's steaming, make the ginger scallion sauce, which only has five ingredients.
For a quick meal, you can add fresh veggies along with the steamed chicken. If you have more time, try a vegetable stir fry such as Yu Choy or Fish Fragrant Eggplant.
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🍗 Tips for Juicy chicken breasts
Chicken breast is a lean protein that can easily dry out under high heat. As a result, cooking chicken breasts can be intimidating, as the difference between juicy and dry chicken can come down to a matter of seconds. However, with a few simple tricks, you can consistently achieve juicy chicken. Here are my top tips:
- Salt the chicken for at least 40 minutes before steaming. The salt helps dissolve a muscle protein called myosin, which prevents it from tightening during cooking. This leads to less moisture loss and results in juicier meat.
- Flip the chicken breasts every 3 minutes to ensure even cooking. The top side that comes in contact with the steam will be hotter than the bottom.
- Use an instant-read thermometer to monitor the temperature of the steamed chicken breast so that it doesn't overcook.
- Pull the chicken out at 150°F. Most people think chicken needs to reach 165°F to be safe, but that's not true. Food safety depends on both time and temperature. If chicken is held at 150°F for at least 3 minutes, it's just as safe as chicken cooked to 165°F. For more information, check out this article.
👨🍳 How to Steam at Home
There are two main ways to steam at home.
- Bamboo steamer. Bamboo steamer baskets are my preferred method. They allow you to cook your food quickly, consistently, and efficiently. They're typically made of bamboo and have a woven lid that allows steam pressure to escape. This produces a gentle, humid steam that doesn't overcook food.
- Elevated rack inside a pot: Another option is to place a rack inside a pot and place your food on top of it. Fill the pot with some water, then cover it with a lid. However, this steam setup requires more monitoring as steam pressure can easily build up if the heat is too high or the lid doesn't have holes.
🧂 Ingredients
- Chicken breasts - Use fresh or fully defrosted chicken breasts. To defrost frozen chicken breasts quickly, place them in a bowl of cold water for 30-60 minutes.
- Ginger and Green onions - These form the main flavor base for the sauce—one of my favorite combinations in Chinese cooking.
- Oil - Any neutral flavored oil like canola, corn, soybean, peanut, or vegetable.
- Salt - We need salt for marinating the breasts as well as for the ginger-scallion sauce.
- Toasted sesame oil - This adds a lovely nutty fragrance to the sauce. Ensure the sesame oil is toasted, as regular sesame oil doesn't flavor much.
🔪 Instructions
Step 1. Marinate chicken
Apply 1 teaspoon of kosher salt to both sides of the chicken breasts. Let them rest on a plate in the fridge for at least 40 minutes and up to 4 hours.
Step 2. Make ginger scallion sauce
Heat ¼ cup oil to 350°F in a nonstick pan or wok over high heat. Add the ginger and cook for about 15 seconds to draw out their aroma. Add the scallions and cook for another 15 seconds.
Transfer the sauce to a boil, add salt and toasted sesame oil, and mix thoroughly.
Step 3. Steam chicken
Place the chicken in a single layer on a heat-proof plate or dish. Then, place it in a steamer basket or on top of a steaming rack inside a pot. Steam on high heat for 12-14 minutes, flipping every 3 minutes. If you're steaming inside a pot, the chicken will cook faster, so keep an eye on it. The chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 150°F.
Remove the chicken breasts from the steamer and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then, slice it into thin slices and transfer them to a serving dish. Spoon the ginger scallion sauce over the steamed chicken breast and serve immediately with steamed rice.
If you want a spicier kick, try serving the Chinese Steamed Chicken recipe with my Spicy Chinese Chili Sauce.
💭 Top Tips
- Salt the chicken breasts for at least 40 minutes before steaming. The salt helps dissolve a muscle protein called myosin, which prevents it from tightening during cooking. This leads to less moisture loss and results in juicier meat.
- Use an instant-read thermometer. The difference between juicy and dry chicken breasts can be as little as 30 seconds of cooking time. Using a thermometer to pull out the meat at the right time is critical.
- Ensure that frozen chicken breasts are fully defrosted before cooking. If they're still frozen in the middle, the inside will take longer to reach the correct temperature, meanwhile, the outside will overcook.
👨🏻🍳 Variations
- Steamed Chicken Thighs - You can replace chicken breasts with chicken thighs in a pinch. Chicken thighs are more forgiving than chicken breasts, which don't dry out as easily. You'll need to cook bone-in chicken thighs for at least 25 minutes until they reach an internal temperature of 165°F in the thickest part of the meat. For boneless chicken thighs, cook for 15-20 minutes until they reach 165°F.
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
Storing: Allow the steamed chicken breast to cool completely before storing them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The ginger-scallion sauce can be stored alongside or separately for the same time.
Reheating: Reheat for a few minutes in the microwave, or in a 250°F oven or air fryer, until heated through. Allow to thaw in the fridge overnight if reheating from frozen.
Freezing: Cooked chicken can be frozen for up to 4 months in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag with as much air removed as possible.
Make Ahead: To make this an easy freezer meal, freeze the salted, uncooked chicken for up to 4 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before continuing with the recipe.
📖 Recipe FAQs
You can steam vegetables in addition to chicken, yes. The steaming time will vary depending on the type and size of the pieces. The vegetables can also be cooked in the boiling water beneath the steaming basket. Remember to season the vegetables with salt in the water if you use this method.
Yes, but be sure to completely defrost the chicken first; otherwise, the outside will be overcooked before the interior reaches the proper temperature. Let it sit in a bowl of water in the refrigerator overnight to defrost.
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📋 Recipe
Chinese Steamed Chicken Breast
Equipment
- 1 bamboo steamer (optional)
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
Ginger scallion sauce
- ¼ cup neutral oil
- ½ cup scallion (thinly sliced)
- ¼ cup ginger (minced)
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Apply 1 teaspoon of kosher salt to both sides of the chicken breasts. Let them rest on a plate in the fridge for at least 40 minutes and up to 4 hours.
- Heat oil to 350°F in a nonstick pan or wok over high heat. Add the ginger and cook for about 15 seconds to draw out their aroma. Add the scallions and cook for another 15 seconds.
- Transfer the sauce to a boil, add salt and toasted sesame oil, and mix thoroughly.
- Place the chicken in a single layer on a heat-proof plate or dish. Then, place it in a steamer basket or on top of a steaming rack inside a pot. Steam on high heat for 12-14 minutes, flipping every 3 minutes. If you're steaming inside a pot, the chicken will cook faster, so keep an eye on it. The chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 150°F.
- Remove the chicken from the steamer and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then, slice it into thin slices and transfer them to a serving dish. Spoon the scallion-ginger sauce over the chicken and serve immediately.
Notes
- Salt the chicken for at least 40 minutes before steaming. The salt helps dissolve a muscle protein called myosin, which prevents it from tightening during cooking. This leads to less moisture loss and results in juicier meat.
- Use an instant-read thermometer. The difference between juicy and dry chicken breasts can be as little as 30 seconds of cooking time. Using a thermometer to pull out the meat at the right time is critical.
- Ensure that frozen chicken breasts are fully defrosted before cooking. If they're still frozen in the middle, the inside will take longer to reach the correct temperature, meanwhile, the outside will overcook.
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