This recipe is inspired by 3 cup chicken, an addictive Taiwanese dish in which bite sized pieces of chicken are simmered with rice wine, soy sauce and sesame oil, until all the liquid has reduced to a rich glaze, and finished with fresh basil. We have added kimchi juice to the braising liquid, and garnished the finished dish with fresh kimchi.
This is a great dish to prep ahead and serve with short-grain Japanese or Korean rice and some steamed green vegetables, a lunchbox favourite. Kimchi is a wonderful ingredient to cook with, bringing real depth of flavour. However, to get all of the gut health benefits, we always recommend eating your creation with some raw kimchi on the side, as the cooking process kills off the beneficial bacteria.
-1 jar of Classic Kimchi
-800g chicken thigh fillets, cut into bite sized pieces
-75ml Rice wine such as sake or shaoxing (can substitute really well with medium dry sherry)
- 45ml light soy sauce, plus extra to taste
-45ml ml Roasted sesame oil
- 45ml sunflower oil
-1 tbsp Korean red chilli flakes
-½ tsp baking soda (bicarbonate), optional
-1 tsp Cornflour
- 1 Bottle of Scotch Bonnet Hot sauce
-40g fresh ginger, finely chopped
-20g Garlic, finely chopped
-1-2 Red chillies, finely chopped
-120g spring onion, white part sliced into 1cm pieces, green part finely sliced
-Lime juice to taste
-½ a bunch of basil roughly chopped
- 1tbsp roasted sesame seeds
-Firstly, combine the diced chicken thigh with the soy sauce, baking soda, sesame oil and rice wine and allow to marinate, for at least 20 minutes, and as long as overnight (in the fridge of course). This allows the baking soda to tenderise the chicken.
-Meanwhile, using a sieve set over a bowl, drain the jar of kimchi, squeezing out all of the excess juice. Slice half of the drained kimchi into thin strips, the other half keep in a small serving bowl in the fridge.
-In a wide, heavy pot, heat the sunflower oil until smoking hot. Add the chopped garlic, ginger, and whites of spring onion and fry on maximum heat until they start to colour, around 2 minutes
-Add the chilli flakes and stir for 30 seconds until the oil has coloured red.
-Add the marinated chicken and the kimchi juice and cook over maximum heat until the liquid starts to boil.
-Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook the chicken uncovered, stirring every few minutes, until all most of the liquid has evaporated and the chicken is coated in a rich oily glaze (around 25-30 minutes).
-Finally, turn the heat off and stir through the sliced kimchi, spring onion greens and basil, taste and squeeze in some lime juice and soy sauce to taste.
-Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and serve with rice, some steamed vegetables and the Scotch Bonnet on the side.