Chicken with Ginger Scallion Oil 薑蔥油淋雞 (jiāng cōng yóu lín jī) is originally a Hakka dish. As a matter of fact, Hakka cuisine is famous for their chicken. Most people know of the Hakka Salt Baked Chicken 客家鹽焗雞 (kè jiā yán jú jī). But they have various chicken dishes using different methods like poaching, steaming and roasting. Some even say that the Cantonese Poached Chicken 白切雞 originated from Hakka cuisine. In any case, it’s safe to say that the Hakka people knew how to make good chicken!
I believe that many original Hakka dishes have been incorporated into Cantonese cuisine. The Hakka people were originally from the Central Plains of China 中原 (Northern China). Over the course of thousands of years, they made their way to Guangdong province. They are a very tight-knit family community. And when they migrated, they all migrated together. The Hakka people place a lot of importance on education. I came across a Hakka saying that I found quite profound… “生子不讀書，不如養大豬”! It says, “if you have children that don’t read (get an education), why not just raise a big pig!” In Cantonese, when parents get angry at their children, they say, “生舊叉燒好過生你” which means “I should’ve given birth to a piece of Char Siu rather than you!” I love how Chinese people can always use food to explain important life lessons!
In Shanghai and Cantonese cuisine, they also have Chicken with Ginger Scallion Oil 薑蔥油淋雞. Some chefs will poach the chicken and some will steam them to make this dish. Oil, ginger and scallions are common denominators. Another difference is the sauce. You can make the sauce from the juice resulting from steaming or make a soy sauce one, like mine. I pretty much like all of them! My criteria for a good chicken dish is moist and tender meat and a sauce that enhances the natural flavour of the meat.
My (boneless) Chicken with Ginger Scallion Oil 薑蔥油淋雞 recipe will show you how to steam a chicken that comes out moist and tender. And the sauce is sooooo good, you’ll want to put it on everything! There is also a sequel to this dish so that nothing goes to waste. Stewed Tender Chicken Noodle Soup 嫩雞煨麵 (nèn jī wèi miàn) can be made the next day with the chicken carcass, the steamed chicken juice and the stewed aromatics. This is not your average chicken noodle soup!
Chicken with Ginger Scallion Oil 薑蔥油淋雞
Ingredients
- 1 Whole chicken (the one in the photo is 4 lbs)
- 1 tsp Salt
- ½ tsp White pepper powder
- 2 Large shallots
- 4 stalks Green onions
- 6 slices Ginger
- 6 cloves Garlic
- 3 stalks Green onions (for garnish)
- 3 slices Ginger (for garnish)
I didn't add this in mine - 3 tbsp Light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- ½ c Water
- 50 g Chicken fat
- 2 tbsp Oil
Instructions
- Trim excess fat off chicken and save to make sauce
- Coarsely chop shallots and peel garlic
you may keep garlic in whole cloves - Slice green onions in large segments
- Prepare 6 slices of ginger
- In a pan, sweat the chicken fat on low-medium heat until fat is rendered
- Add ginger and turn heat to medium-high. Cook ginger until it browns a bit. Add another 2 tbsp oil
- Add shallots, green onions and garlic until aromatic. Add 3 tbsp light soy sauce, 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp sugar. Mix until sauce starts to simmer. Add ½ cup water.
- When sauce starts to boil, turn heat down to low and let it braise for 20 minutes
- Use a strainer to remove all the solids from the sauce and set both aside
- Use 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp white pepper powder and rub on the skin of the chicken
- Take the solids (ginger, green onions, shallots and garlic) retrieved from the sauce and put it in the cavity of the chicken
I had to tie the legs together so that the stuffing could stay in the cavity but it’s not necessary if the stuffing is not falling out - Steam the chicken with breast side down on medium heat for 45 minutes
my chicken was around 4 lbs. If your chicken is around 3 pounds, check for doneness in 30 minutes - Thinly shred the other 3 stalks of green onions and soak in water for 20 minutes. Drain and let dry
- Thinly shred 3 pieces of ginger and set aside
I did not add any ginger garnish - Once the chicken is done, remove from heat and let it cool for 15 minutes
- All the water/juice around the chicken (on the plate) after steaming should be removed and saved to make other delicious foods
- Remove the solids from the chicken cavity
save these with the chicken juice and I’ll show you how to make another delicious dish with everything saved - Debone the chicken. Remove the breast meat (click here for a larger image)
- Remove the wings and legs. Debone the legs (click here for a larger image)
- Arrange the meat on a serving dish
Save the bones for making chicken broth 
- Cover the chicken with the green onion and ginger garnishes
- Reheat the soy sauce mixture until it boils
- Pour all the soy sauce of the chicken
- Serve
- Use the saved chicken juice, ginger, shallots, green onions, garlic and chicken carcass to make Stewed Tender Chicken Noodle Soup for the next day. An excellent comfort food!
Chicken steam or boiled is rarely yellow. Tastes good. Made this recipe any secret?
Hi Andrew, I think you're asking me how to make steamed or boiled chicken yellow. With steamed chicken...first, take boiling water and pour it onto the chicken. Mix salt, sand ginger powder and turmeric and rub it onto the chicken. Then pour some sesame oil onto the chicken to lock-in the seasoning. For boiled chicken, you do the same, but you need to marinade the chicken overnight to lock-in the yellow color from the turmeric. Hope this helps!