This luke warm chicken salad has so many amazing flavours, the sauce really makes the dish: tongue tingling Sichuan peppers, toasty sesame seeds, savory soy sauce, a drop of black vinegar, honey, chili oil, finely chopped spring onions and finished off with half a cup of the chicken broth just made.
The chicken breasts are poached very slowly in a broth flavored with ginger, garlic and spring onion. First boil on very low heat till just bubbling for 8 minutes. Then turn off the heat and leave in the hot water for another 10 minutes to cook through, then move to a bowl of ice water to cool.
When cooled place on a chopping board and you’re ready to BANG with a rolling pin! Hence the name ;).
Shred the chicken further and lay on finely chopped cucumbers. Drizzle generously with the sauce and some chilli oil.
Traditionally it’s served like this but to make it a meal I served it with steamed rice and stir fried sesame oil sugar snaps.
@marionskitchen thanks for the recipe, another winner!
Szechuan Bang Bang Chicken
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...Ingredients
- 400 g chicken breasts
- 4 slices ginger, bruised
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 spring onions, finely sliced (green & white parts)
- 1 large cucumber, finely sliced into strips
- Dressing:
- ½ tsp whole Szechuan peppercorns
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vinegar (either white vinegar or Chinese black vinegar)
- 1 tbsp chili oil (click here for my homemade version)
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- On the side
- 300g sugar snaps
- 1 tsp sesame oil to coat after
- steamed white rice
Instructions
Pour 1 liter of cold water in saucepan and add the ginger, garlic and spring onions.
Add the chicken breasts and place over high heat.
Wait for the water to just start to gentle simmer, then turn the heat down to medium and continue to simmer gently for exactly 8 minutes.
Then turn the heat off (leave the saucepan on the hot stovetop) and leave for 10 minutes.
Transfer the chicken to a bowl of iced water.
Reserve the ½ cup of the poaching liquid for later use.
When the chicken is cool. Use a rolling pin to bang the chicken pieces to loosen them. Then tear into fine shreds.
While the chicken is cooling you can make the dressing:
Heat the Sichuan peppercorns in a dry frying pan until fragrant.
Use a mortar and pestle to grind to a find powder and then transfer to a bowl.
Add the toasted sesame seeds, soy sauce, vinegar, chili oil, salt and the reserved poaching liquid.
To serve:
Scatter the cucumber over a serving plate. Top with the shredded chicken.
Spoon over the dressing. Add additional chili oil if you like it spicy.
Serve with stir fried sugar snaps with a drizzle of sesame oil and steamed white rice.
