Paper-Wrapped Chicken
This recipe is courtesy of the Chang family in Singapore that has been passed down for 5 generation of Cantonese. It is a simple dish with savory flavors that I have enjoyed on many occasions.
Ingredients
- 1 fresh chicken (2 ½ to 3 lb), cut into about 20 pieces
- 3 Tbsp light soy sauce
- 3 Tbsp Chinese rice-wine, my preference Shao Hsing or similar
- 1 Tbsp ginger juice
- 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ tsp sesame oil
- 20 pieces baking paper, cut into 9 to 10-inch squares
- Vegetable oil for deep frying
Instructions
To make ginger juice:
Scrap off the skin and finely chop a 2-inch knob of ginger. Put the chopped ginger in a spice grinder with 1 tablespoon water and process until crushed. Pour the mixture into a sieve, pressing down with a large spoon to extract the ginger juice, which can be used in marinades.
- Put the chicken in a large bowl. Add all the seasoning ingredients and mix well, preferably with your hands. Marinate for at least 2 hours, placing it in the bowl in the refrigerator, stirring a few times.
- Drain the chicken pieces. Put a piece of chicken in the centre of each piece of paper, with one point facing you, diamond-fashion. Tuck in the end closest to you, then the sides, then fold over and tuck in the end envelope-fashion.
- Deep-fry the wrapped chicken, a few pieces at a time, over high heat, turning several times during cooking, about 5 minutes.
- Serve the chicken pieces in their wrappers and remember to provide a bowl for the discarded papers, and finger bowls for rinsing the hands or paper napkins.