Sunday 9 February 2014

Mummy's Ginger Chicken


This is another dish that makes regular rounds on my mum's menu. It has lots of ginger, garlic and spring onions. My mum likes to add mushrooms as they are meaty and become very tasty after absorbing the flavors from the seasonings.


Ginger chicken with sesame oil is a dish usually consumed by Chinese mothers who are in confinement. But you don't have to be in confinement to enjoy this dish. My mum's version is slightly different from the traditional dish. If I remember correctly, the confinement dish is cooked with just ginger, chicken and sesame oil.


As much as I love sesame oil, I do find the smell quiet overpowering. Because of that, I cook using a mixture of grapeseed oil and sesame oil. That way, the smell of sesame oil is not too strong. This is a simple and hassle free dish that uses lots of ginger, garlic and spring onions as aromatics.


My mum would cook extra so that it can last for lunch and dinner. She is very practical in her approach and we kids did not mind having the same dish for lunch and dinner. After all, we love our mum's cooking and we were happy having a yummy dish twice in a day. In fact there were days when I felt I didn't get enough. Hee..hee...me and my bottomless stomach :)


My auntie on the other hand is a bit more particular. She ensures that her family has variety and she prepares different dishes for lunch and dinner. That's a lot of work and far as I am concerned but I guess my auntie, who loves cooking finds it fun to cook twice a day. Me? Well, I love cooking but I take the practical approach just like my mum.


As a matter of fact, I take after my mum quite a bit. One of my mum's unmistakable traits I inherited is that nobody is allowed within a ten meter radius from the kitchen when I am cooking. I must have the whole kitchen to myself and nobody is allowed to come in and hang around. 


My auntie is the exact opposite. She loves having an entourage when she is cooking or baking. She will be barking orders for you to measure the sugar, beat the eggs, slice the cucumbers or whatever else that needs to be done. She is the master in the art of delegation.


Anyway, to each his own. We all have different styles of doing things and our own little, little, idiosyncrasies. Now how did ginger chicken lead to this? Ah, just a little bit of story about me. Now, let me nip to the kitchen for another helping of ginger chicken!









Ginger Chicken
Recipe source : Phong Hong

Ingredients :
- Half chicken, cut into bite sized pieces
- 10 small Shitake mushrooms, soaked to soften
- 4 big cloves garlic, chopped
- 10 slices ginger
- 3 stalks spring onions, separate the white part and green part
- Cooking oil and sesame oil (or can just use sesame oil)
(I mixed 2 tablespoons cooking oil with 1 tablespoon sesame oil)
- 1 tablespoon Shiaoxing wine

To marinate chicken :
- 1 big clove garlic, finely minced
- 1 tablespoon light soya sauce
- a dash of pepper
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Seasonings :
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 2 tablespoons light soya sauce
- 1 tsp dark thick soya sauce

To thicken gravy :
- Mix 1 teaspoon potato flour or corn flour with 1 tablespoon of water.

Method :
1. Mix chicken with marinade and marinate for 30 minutes.
2. Heat oil and saute ginger, garlic and white part of spring onions until aromatic.
3. Add chicken and fry until chicken turns opaque.
4. Add mushrooms and seasonings and mix.
5. Add a little bit of water and cover the wok to simmer.
6. When the chicken is cooked, add the green part of the spring onions and stir.
7. Add potato flour/cornflour mixture to thicken gravy.
8. Dish out and serve.

34 comments:

  1. Hi Phong Hong
    No doubt about, looking after one pic after another, Im sure it tastw absolutely yummy and delicious. I dont need any other dishes, just this would do for my rice.

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    1. Mel, me too would be happy with just this one dish!

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  2. Hi Phong Hong, I would add more ginger cos' I usually go for the ginger and spring onions before the chicken. At my MIL's place, I had to cook this dish about 2-3 times a week without the mushrooms and I cannot add dark soy sauce. She doesn't like the dish to look 'dark'.

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    1. Hi Kimmy, I also sapu the ginger and spring onions as these are so flavourful! So your cooking style have to suit MIL at her house hee..hee..

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  3. I like this oil and I love its smell!

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    1. Ola, I agree that it is fragrant but too much and I feel giddy :)

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  4. Phong hong l just love this dish l am just like you can't stand the strong smell of sesame oil l mix half half the smell of pure sesame oil will make me feel like want to vomit You make me laugh when l read the part of your auntie barking orders it makes me laugh.Good old memories

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    1. EE, this dish can eat two plates of rice especially with cili padi, garlic and soya sauce. I remember those days when I have to get sugar, flour and measure for you :)

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  5. i can eat the dish even without the chicken... i can even smell it from reading your recipe... psss... your aunt reminds me of my husband! hahahaha

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    1. Hi Victoria! Hah..hah...you are married to a master of delegation :) The mushrooms in this dish tastes so good, I can also happily forgo the chicken.

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  6. yummy chicken...so easy to cook rite..... that auntie that was barking orders....i think we know who is she :)

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    1. Oh really? Hee...hee...she is in the same country as you now :D

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  7. Looks nicer than my missus'. She cooks all the time - till we all got so sick of it. Sometimes she adds potatoes too.

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    1. Hee..hee...too much of a good thing and we get tired of it. Hmm...potatoes are nice but I can't eat them at the moment sobs!

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  8. Hi.
    This is delicious! Both you and Kimmy are great cook!!

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    1. Thank you, Amy! But Kimmy is lots, lots better than me :)

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  9. Hi PH, this is yummy. I love cooking this for my family too, easy and delicious!

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    1. Hi Yen, I don't mind cooking this dish often but then I will run out of things to post hah...hah...

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  10. Hai, Phong Hong, Happy CNY. Mum's cook always the best.

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    1. Hi xing hui! Yes, agree that mum's cooking is the best. Your boys will also agree!

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  11. Hi Phong Hong,
    This is one of my favourite dish! I love eating it with sliced chili padi and see yau! Yums!
    And I cook this just like you did, mixture of sesame oil and canola oil, the only difference is, I added in the cornflour to the marinade ingredients instead of at the end. I could eat two plates of rice with just this one dish alone! Love the mushrooms!
    And I too, prefer to be alone in my kitchen when I'm cooking. I work faster with no one around and furthermore, my kitchen is small! hehe!

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    1. Hi Joyce! Ah we have so much in common! I also love this with chili padi and soya sauce and I also add raw garlic. I should try adding the cornflour to the marinade too. When there are other people in the kitchen, I feel self-concious and can't concentrate so I have to ban them from coming in!

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  12. When I see this title in my blog list updates, I have to read yours first.. Before I click on your post, I'm already thinking "mahyau keong gai".. That's what my mum call this dish from day1..

    I love my mum's mahyau keong gai and she always cooks this when I'm going home.. (I stayed separately after getting married, but we go back to her place regularly).. Don't know if I should continue writing, but she knows I love this dish with lots of chicken liver, "gai yun".. I know it's unhealthy, but when she cooks this, I MUST HAVE my livers to go with this. With only the gravy, I can eat 2 bowls of rice already (with my gai yun), hehe.. No need the chicken also nevermind, I always tell my mum that..

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    1. Hi Louiz! Thank you for your support :) I like to read your comments because you really express your opinion "kaw-kaw" hah..hah... I love this dish too, can eat it every week also no problems. And hey, I also love chicken liver! But I was told not to eat it so I avoided but still curi-curi sometimes. I love it especially cooked in dry style curry.

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  13. Yes, this definitely is a comforting dish that i don't mind eating twice in a day too. Like your mum, my mum had the same practical approach and it works especially well with dishes like these that taste even better after being left for some time :)

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    1. Your are right! I notice that this tastes a lot better when reheated the next day.

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  14. Hi PH, I had lots of this dish during my confinement ! and it is so yummy that I still make it on and off these days. Sometimes I blend lots of ginger into ginger paste, and keep to make this dish. Easy, fast and yummy.

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    1. Hi Esther! Confinement must be a nice time as you get lots of delicious gingery foods. Oh, I see can use blended ginger. I should try that, extra flavours!

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  15. Hi Phong Hong,

    Lucky you having theseopportunity to learn all these delicious cooking from your mum... Her ginger chicken looks wonderful.

    Zoe

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    1. Hi Zoe! Yes, I am lucky aren't I? There are a few more of my mum's dishes that I would like to cook and share. Hopefully very soon!

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  16. Hi PH...

    Lauk ni, kalau kasi i makan without rice pun dah cukup sedap! I love chicken, I love ginger... mesti syok punya.

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    1. Hi MamaFami! Ratah gitu jer kan? I will eat with sayur goreng dengan bawang putih dan garam. Simple and good!

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  17. Don't know why, I seldom cook this simple and yummy chicken dish, thanks for the remind.

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    1. Sonia, you got talent and can cook many, many dishes! Myself heh...heh...only can do this type of simple homestyle campak-campak dishes. But luckily come out can eat :D

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