Chicken breast salad

 

This dish was inspired by a dish I ate at a izakaya [izakaja] lately (picture below). It is one of the most delicious dish I have ever had. The izakaya was run by a Chinese and all dishes were originated from China. 

This is called Sichuan chicken salad. I did not know what is inside it but definitely there were Sichuan pepper and Sichuan chili oil. Besides, it was sour so there must have been vinegar or lime. I do not think there was soy sauce because the color did not seem so. There maybe some sesame paste though, as the sauce was quite thick. The meat was cold and firm, and even crunchy when you bite it. 

When searching for recipes, I saw some similar ones such as this and this. I don't know whether it is the right one (I definitely should give them a try), but then I saw another recipe in a Japanese cookbook and followed it for the sauce, it turned out that the taste was almost identical. It is just amazing!

So, I would like to share it with you here. Hope you will have a good adventure just like I did!

Step 1: Boil chicken breast (200-300g). This step is done differently in the cook book with some sake and sugar added to the water, but I think there is no need to get so complicated, as the chicken is sweet by nature. I would like to keep it simple and focus on the sauce, so here is the technique:

First, you boil 600ml of water in a sauce pan with a teaspoon of salt, and cut the chicken breast into 4 pieces (or leave it uncut if under 150g, slightly trimmed for ease of boiling, but just avoid slicing it too much-this is a later step). 

When it boils, lower the heat and add the chicken in, cover with a lid. Let it simmer over medium heat for about 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and let it sit for 20 more minutes. About half the cooking occurs during each interval. Keep the stock to make the sauce and other dishes.

Step 2: Prepare a bowl of 500 ml of water with cubes of ice. Prepare an ice bath by filling a bowl with 500 ml of water and an abundance of ice cubes, ideally covering the water's surface halfway. Swiftly transfer the cooked chicken to this ice bath, allowing it to rest until ready for assembly (approximately 30 minutes suffices). This method locks in the chicken's essence, preserving its succulence, and contributes to the coveted firm and crunchy texture.

Step 3: Make the sauce. Blend together 3 cloves of minced garlic, the white segments of 3 spring onions or 1 leek (chopped), 3 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, 1 tablespoon of chili oil, 4 tablespoons of chicken broth, and a sprinkle of black pepper. 

Step 4: Take the chicken out of cold water and cut them into 0.5 cm thick slices diagonally against the grains or not against the grains; it doesn't matter much to be honest. Arrange the slices on a plate.

For a garnish, finely slice the white portion of a leek or several spring onion stalks. Arrange them gracefully atop the chicken canvas. Then, pour the sauce in a circle until it's out.

You can garnish with chili flakes and green parsley or coriander to balance the color for the dish. Enjoy!