How To Make Soy Sauce Chicken

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Walking through Chinatown, you’ll often see soy sauce chicken displayed in shop windows next to sides of roasted pork, whole roasted ducks and strips of glistening char siu. It’s another Cantonese classic that’s incredibly rewarding to make at home for holiday celebrations or special weekend dinners.

Soy sauce chicken fits the current ethos of using simple, high quality ingredients to create a delicious meal. Choose your preferred chicken, soy sauces and stock, then set aside a day to cook while you do other things around the house, and you will be thrilled with the result.

Soy sauce chicken makes a beautiful centerpiece for a memorable family meal. Stewing the chicken in soy sauce and stock produces tender, deeply flavorful meat and richly bronzed skin. As a bonus, the satisfying sauce you create can be frozen and saved for future weeknight stir fries.

In my opinion, this recipe benefits from using a whole chicken raised in the Chinese style. I find that chickens purchased in Chinatown develop a richer flavor and absorb marinades more evenly than the mass market roasters you find at chain grocery stores.

While you are buying your chicken, pick up fresh bottles of light and dark soy sauce, even if your pantry is already full. The recipe calls for about two cups in all and you don’t want to run out — my favorite brand is Pearl River Bridge.

Finally, if you’re really motivated, buy chicken and pork bones from the butcher to make your own stock. Rich, slow-simmered Chinese meat stock is a secret weapon that you can deploy in recipes to amaze your guests. Soy sauce chicken presents a great opportunity to show off.

Here’s how to make soy sauce chicken, step-by-step. The detailed tutorial with pictures and directions is at the bottom of the page.

Your turn! What tips can you share from your family’s recipe? Want to ask a question before you start cooking? I’d love to hear from you in the comments section below!

Soy Sauce Chicken Recipe

Makes: 4 Servings | Prep Time: 3 Hours | Cook Time: 5 Hours

Ingredients

3 1/2 pound whole chicken
2 tablespoons ginger, finely chopped
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons Shaoxing rice wine
1 1/4 cups dark soy sauce
3/4 cup light soy sauce
2 1/2 cups cooking oil
1 3/4 cups chicken and pork stock
2 teaspoons roasted sesame oil

Directions

1. Clean the chicken by rinsing, draining, removing any stray fat and cutting off the parson’s nose. Rub the chopped ginger over the inside and outside of the chicken.

2. Combine the sugar, rice wine and soy sauces, pour over the chicken in a bowl and marinate for 3 hours in the refrigerator. Turn the chicken occasionally to spread the flavor and color evenly.

3. Heat the cooking oil in a wok over high heat. Reserving the marinade, drain the chicken and fry in the hot oil for about 8 minutes, until all sides of the bird are lightly browned.

4. Combine the marinade and stock in a pot, add the chicken and bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and let the pot sit for 3 hours, transferring it to the refrigerator once it’s cool.

5. Drain the chicken, reserve the stock and marinade sauce mixture, then brush the chicken with sesame oil and refrigerate for another hour.

6. Chop the chicken into pieces and serve over hot rice with the reserved sauce.

Step-By-Step Tutorial

This recipe is the epitome of using a small number of high quality ingredients to create something delicious. The primary ingredients are a whole chicken, two types of soy sauce, ginger and stock.

Clean the chicken by rinsing, draining, removing any stray fat and cutting off the parson’s nose. Rub the chopped ginger over the inside and outside of the chicken.

Combine the sugar, rice wine and soy sauces, pour over the chicken in a bowl and marinate for 3 hours in the refrigerator. Turn the chicken occasionally to spread the flavor and color evenly.

Here’s what the chicken looks like after marinating — it acquires a beautiful brown color from the soy sauce marinade.

Heat the cooking oil in a wok over high heat. Reserving the marinade, drain the chicken and fry in the hot oil for about 8 minutes, until all sides of the bird are lightly browned.

Combine the marinade and stock in a pot, add the chicken and bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 40 minutes.

Remove from the heat and let the pot sit for 3 hours, transferring it to the refrigerator once it’s cool.

Drain the chicken, reserve the stock and marinade sauce mixture, then brush the chicken with sesame oil and refrigerate for another hour.

Chop the chicken into pieces and serve over hot rice with the reserved sauce.