nucmednet Chapter 173: Golden Minced Chicken
Chapter 173: Golden Minced Chicken
When filtering soy sauce, bamboo strips are woven into a cylinder with sides but no bottom, called a "sauce cylinder".
Place the sauce container at the bottom of the jar, leaving the cloudy soy sauce inside. Do not remove it until the bottom is clear. Press the container with a brick to prevent it from floating and preventing the cloudy liquid from flowing into the jar. The next morning, when the soy sauce in the container is clear, slowly scoop it out and pour it into a clean jar. Let it air dry for another half a month. Cover the jar mouth with gauze or linen to keep out flies and insects.
To make more, add soybeans, flour, salt, and water in the appropriate proportions. When straining the soy sauce, remove half of the floating bean dregs and dry them in the sun to make fermented black beans.
Leftover bean curd can be used to make sweet sauce. Take a whole piece of bean curd, soak it in cooled rice soup, dry it in the sun, soak it again, and then dry it in the sun four or five times a day. If the weather is hot, dry it six or seven times, even better, until the bean curd turns red. For every kilogram of bean curd, add four ounces of salt and ten bowls of water. First, boil the salt water, let it settle and cool, then use it to soak the bean curd.
After drying, add boiling water to the original amount, stirring occasionally to avoid breaking up the yellow sauce. Sun-dry until the sauce turns red. Strain the sauce and add it to a pot. Add star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, and other whole spices, along with sesame seeds (in a bag). Bring to a boil for three or four times. Add a small bottle of good wine and bring to a boil. Can and set aside. Add salt to the remaining residue and boil it in water. Sun-dry it again as before until it turns red. Bring it to a boil again and save it for use as a seasoning in cooking.
Cheng Yuntao admired the wisdom of their ancestors very much. They were able to master such a complicated brewing method, transforming ordinary soybeans into an indispensable flavor-enhancing ingredient in the kitchen.
This seemingly ordinary jar of soy sauce is the result of countless attempts at exploration and improvement.
From carefully selecting soybeans with plump grains and excellent texture, to skillfully controlling the temperature and humidity during fermentation, to waiting for time to settle with immense patience, every step of the process is poured into the hard work and ingenuity of our ancestors.
At that time, there were no sophisticated instruments to rely on. It was all thanks to the experience passed down from generation to generation by our ancestors, their familiarity with the characteristics of the ingredients, and their passion for life, that they created this mellow sauce aroma full of the fireworks of the world and the true taste of life in the most simple and pure way.
There is quite a trick to making this sauce.
It is said that after the sauce is made, sprinkling mustard or Sichuan pepper powder on its surface can prevent parasites from attaching; sprinkling fennel powder and then smearing chicken feathers dipped in sesame oil on the mouth of the jar can prevent mosquitoes and flies from invading; stirring the sauce and filtering it with white cloth can make it clean.
There are also important considerations for water collection. During the twelfth month of the previous year, choose a very cold day and boil water. Place it in an open area in the courtyard to cool, then seal it. This water is then used to make sauces in the summer, ensuring it is insect-free and long-lasting. Furthermore, water collected on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month should be stored in a clean jar and used to make sauces and vinegar. The pickled items will remain rotten for a year.
Furthermore, making the sauce requires three steps: first, cooking the noodles in boiling water to make the cakes; second, using the cooked noodles to make the yellow cakes, which is done by first making the cakes, covering them with grass, and then allowing them to ferment to produce yellow-green fungal spores. Third, salt is soaked in boiling water to fully dissolve.
Although Cheng Yuntao's jar of soy sauce was brewed well, she was lazy when it came to getting water and only used mountain spring water in normal season. It wasn't that she didn't want to follow the ancient method, but it was because in December last year, her family was still staying in a cave and had no idea about storing water.
However, with the experience gained this year, the wine will definitely be better next year.
Cheng Yuntao was very happy that the soy sauce was brewed well. She planned to use the soy sauce to cook for everyone at noon. After thinking about it, she decided to make soy sauce chicken. After all, in this dish, soy sauce is the soul seasoning.
The preparation of soy sauce chicken requires careful attention to the freshness of ingredients and the precise combination of seasonings.
Chicken, usually the tender Sanhuang chicken or Qingyuan chicken, is used. They have thin skin, smooth meat and evenly distributed fat, which lays an excellent taste foundation for soy sauce chicken.
Cheng Yuntao cleaned the chicken, removed all the hair and internal organs, washed it repeatedly, and then evenly scored the chicken several times to make it more flavorful.
Cut the scallion into inch-long pieces, slice the ginger into thin slices, and flatten the garlic. Then add appropriate amount of water to the pot, put in the scallion pieces, ginger slices, star anise, cinnamon and bay leaves, turn to high heat to boil the water, then turn to low heat and simmer for about one incense stick of time to allow the flavor of the spices to fully blend into the water.
The simmering time of spices should not be too short, otherwise the rich aroma will not be stimulated. Add soy sauce, cooking wine, rock sugar and salt while simmering, stirring constantly until the rock sugar is completely dissolved.
In another pot, add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chopped garlic and fry over low heat until golden brown. Be careful with the heat; too high a heat will burn the garlic, while too low a heat will hinder its aroma. Once the aroma is released, remove the garlic and add the garlic oil to the sauce. The garlic oil adds a unique flavor to the sauce.
Cheng Yuntao picked up the trimmed chicken and put it into the sauce, completely submerging the chicken.
Bring the sauce to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer for about half an hour. Periodically, ladle the sauce over the chicken to evenly color it and enhance the flavor. Then, skillfully flip the chicken over and continue simmering for another half an hour. Insert a bamboo chopstick into the thickest part of the thigh; if no blood oozes out, it's cooked through.
If you like soy sauce chicken with crispier skin, you can blanch the skin in boiling water before cooking the chicken, or soak the chicken in ice water after cooking.
After cooking, remove the chicken from the pot. Don't rush to cut it into pieces. Let it cool slightly to make the chicken firmer. Once the heat dissipates, Cheng Yuntao cuts the chicken into even pieces and places them on a plate. Then, pour the rich sauce from the pot over the chicken.
At noon, steaming hot soy sauce chicken was served on the table.
The skin of the soy sauce chicken is slightly shiny, thin and chewy. When you bite it lightly, the rich and mellow aroma of soy sauce instantly bursts in your mouth, and the salty fragrance is mixed with sweetness, instantly stimulating your taste buds.
The chicken is tender and juicy, its texture delicate and juicy, each strand imbued with the essence of the soy sauce, leaving it tender, smooth, and melt-in-your-mouth. As you chew, the tenderness of the chicken blends perfectly with the savory flavor of the soy sauce, creating a balanced, salty, and savory flavor that swirls and spreads across your tongue, leaving a lingering sweetness that lingers after you swallow. The rich, harmonious flavors leave a lingering aftertaste.
During this time, Shaobing stayed here to recuperate, and his physical condition improved significantly. His broken left leg healed quickly, and his cheeks became rounder and more fleshy. His relationship with Cheng Jingzhu grew closer, and they became inseparable playmates.
Mealtime every day is the moment that Shaobing looks forward to the most, but today, while he was eating, his movements suddenly slowed down and a hint of loneliness appeared in his eyes.
He knew that his leg was almost healed, and once he recovered, there seemed to be no reason to stay here any longer. The thought of leaving here and leaving these friends who treated him like family made him feel sad.
Cheng Yuntao had been paying attention to everyone's reactions. Seeing that Shaobing was absent-minded, she thought that the soy sauce chicken she made was not to his taste, so she asked with concern: "Shaobing, what's wrong? Is this soy sauce chicken not delicious?"