Yu Xiang Rou Si is a classic Sichuan food. The word Yu Xiang means fish flavored. However, there’s no fish in this dish. That’s because this sauce was created for a fish dish. A lady cooked this sauce with meat instead, and from then on Yu Xiang Rou Si just becomes one of the greatest Sichuan dishes ever.
Prep and Cook Time: 30 minutes
Number Serves: 2 people
Ingredients:
8 ounces of julienned chicken breast
2 ounces of bamboo shoots
2 ounces of wood ear mushrooms
1 tablespoon of chili oil
1 tablespoon of spicy soy bean paste
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 of a thumb of minced ginger
2 stalks of chopped scallions
1 teaspoon of duo jiao chilies
Chicken Marinade:
3 tablespoons of water
A pinch of salt
1/2 of an egg white
A pinch of pepper
A pinch of sugar
A tablespoon of corn starch with 1 tablespoons of water
1 tablespoon of oil
Sauce:
1/4 cup of chicken soup
1 tablespoon of black soy sauce
1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine
1 tablespoon of black vinegar
A pinch of white pepper
A pinch of sugar
A dash of sesame oil
1 tablespoon of corn starch with 1 tablespoon of water
1 tablespoon of oil
Instruction:
Soak wood ear mushrooms over night.
In fact this dish should be cooked with pork. However, some of you asked me on Facebook to do this recipe with chicken. So I’m using chicken breast today.
First let’s marinate the chicken! (As you probably already know that I’m learning to cook traditional Chinese food with a Chinese master chef right now. So before we film every episode, I would test it as many times as I possibly can. This recipe alone, I tested it for at least 6 times, and here’s the conclusion I got on how to perfectly marinate julienned chicken.) We add a pinch of salt, 3 tablespoons of water, and mix until the chicken is fully absorbed the water. (By doing this, the benefit is that the chicken will be more tender and it won’t stick together while stir frying later.) Then in a big bowl, add 1/2 of an egg white, a pinch of pepper, a pinch of sugar, a tablespoon of corn starch with 1 tablespoon of water, and 1 tablespoon of oil. Mix well. Then add 8 ounces of julienned chicken breast. Stir until combined. Marinate for 10 to 30 minutes.
To mix the sauce, in a small bowl, add 1/4 cup of chicken soup, 1 tablespoon of black soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine, 1 tablespoon of black vinegar, a pinch of white pepper, a pinch of sugar, a dash of sesame oil, 1 tablespoon of corn starch with 1 tablespoon of water, and 1 tablespoon of oil. In a pot, boil water and blanch 2 ounces of bamboo shoots and 2 ounces of wood ear mushrooms for 1 minute. Put aside.
Then let’s wok! In this hot pan, add 3 tablespoons of oil. Then add in the marinated chicken and cook until well done. After it’s fully cooked, take it out and put aside.
In the same pan, add 3 tablespoons oil, 1 tablespoon of chili oil, 1 tablespoon of spicy soy bean paste
3 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 of a thumb of minced ginger, 2 stalks of chopped scallions, 1 teaspoon of duo jiao, and wait until the spicy aroma comes out. Then put back the blanched bamboo shoots and wood ear mushrooms, as well as the cooked julienned chicken. Pour in the sauce and mix well. Serve!
CiCi Li is the host of “CiCi’s Food Paradise” on NTD Television. Join her and discover quick and healthy recipes at CiCiLi.tv
