salt baked chicken

Traditional Hakka salt-baked chicken 盐焗鸡 is prepared by encasing the bird in the salt crust, the culinary tradition that stood the test of time until today since the Qing dynasty.

The Salt baked Chicken Recipe

thigh,

salt, sufficient to encase the whole chicken

g Sand ginger

Tbsp Shaoxing wine,

g Ginger

tsp Chinese five-spice powder

Wash the chicken thighs. Drained. Bone in, skin...

Wash the chicken thighs. Drained. Bone in, skin on.

Mince the sand ginger and ginger finely.

Rub the marinade onto the chicken. Place it...

Rub the marinade onto the chicken. Place it on a wire rack and cover it with cling film. Keep refrigerated and marinate for at least twelve hours.

Cut a large piece of baking paper. Place...

Cut a large piece of baking paper. Place the chicken at the center and wrap it up. Get ready one more piece of paper and wrap it up again. Wrap the bottom part of the parcel with aluminum foil to prevent the paper from charring if you use the wok to bake.

Put the coarse salt in a wok. Stir...

Put the coarse salt in a wok. Stir fry it over low to medium heat until the salt is dry. Continue stir-frying it until you can smell the smoky aroma of the salt. It will take about ten to fifteen minutes.

Remove two third of the salt. Place the...

Remove two third of the salt. Place the wrapped chicken on it. Use the remaining hot salt to cover the chicken entirely.

Cover the wok. Bake the chicken over low...

Cover the wok. Bake the chicken over low heat for thirty minutes. Turn off the heat. Let the chicken bake for another twenty minutes.

Remove the chicken from the salt. Discard the...

Remove the chicken from the salt. Discard the outer layer of the paper. Serve.

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Salt Baked Chicken recipe (盐焗鸡) – How to make in 4 simple steps

Salt Baked Chicken is a signature Hakka (客家) dish, and this is the best tasting original and authentic version of the famous Hakka Salt Baked Chicken recipe.

Salt Baked Chicken, A Hakka Favorite (盐焗鸡)

chicken ((about 3 pounds, 1.35 kg))

Shaoxing wine

sand ginger powder

white pepper

ginger

Rinse the chicken under cold running water. Shake off the excess water and pat the chicken dry with paper towels or a clean dish cloth.

Brush the Shaoxing wine all over the chicken, including the cavity. Next, combine the sand ginger powder, ground white pepper, and 2 teaspoons salt. Rub the mixture all over the chicken, including the cavity.

Now set the chicken on a wire rack, and place it over a tray to catch any drippings. It’s best if you can sit the chicken upright so the liquid in its cavity can drip out. You can use a drinking glass to prop it up. Leave the chicken uncovered and let marinate overnight in the refrigerator. The objective is to dry out the chicken skin.

The next day, take the chicken out of the refrigerator for at least one to two hours before cooking, so the chicken can come up to room temperature. Insert the ginger slices into the cavity and brush the chicken skin with oil. Next, tie up the drumsticks with kitchen twine. Finally, wrap the chicken with a large piece of parchment paper, then wrap it again with a second piece of parchment with the opening on the breast side. Set the chicken aside.

Now “stir-fry” the rest of the salt in a clean dry wok for about 15 minutes, using medium heat until the salt turns light brown. The salt gets very hot, so be careful not to burn yourself or stir too vigorously. Next, fill a wok or Dutch oven with about a ½-inch of hot salt spread evenly across the bottom. Position the chicken with the breast side up in the center of the pot. Next, add the rest of the hot salt onto the chicken to make sure it’s completely covered. Top your vessel of choice with the lid, and cook over medium heat for 35 minutes. Then turn off the heat, and let it sit on the stove, covered, for another 30 to 40 minutes until the salt is warm to the touch.

Once the salt is warm to the touch, use a wooden spoon or a spatula to carefully lift the chicken out of the salt. Be very careful--the chicken is still very hot despite sitting with the heat off for 30-40 minutes. Carefully unwrap the parchment paper, and let it cool slightly until it’s not too hot to handle.

As for how to serve the chicken, this dish is usually served with the meat deboned and pulled apart. You don’t have to follow these steps, but your diners (in our case, Sarah) will appreciate your effort! Plus, the chicken bone and carcass do make a lovely broth. As you pull the meat off the chicken, there will be a lot of juice--do yourself and your diners a favor by pouring the juice over the chicken after it’s plated! For the finishing touch, sprinkle with chopped scallion.

Learn how to make this easy alternative to a classic Cantonese chicken dish!

Salt Baked Chicken (東江鹽焗雞)

chicken

tbsp salt

ginger powder

tbsp sesame oil

lard

Prepare chicken

To prepare the chicken for cooking, pull the drumsticks down and away from the chicken's body to loosen the joints up and make a hole at the base of the neck into the chicken's cavity.

Cook chicken

Boil a large pot of water (enough to cover the whole chicken) and dip the chicken into the water several times to allow the water to go through the inside.

Remove chicken

Remove the chicken from the pot and submerge it into an ice-water bath. Allow it cool for five minutes.

Make sauce

Heat a wok on high heat, pour the salt into wok and stir for several minutes.

Shred and plate

Remove the chicken from the ice-water bath.

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Salt Baked Chicken (東江鹽焗雞)

Top 3 salt baked chicken recipes from across the web

The most viewed salt baked chicken recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

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Salt Baked Chicken (東江鹽焗雞)

The most viewed salt baked chicken recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine