Chinese Red Glutinous Rice Wine Stewed Chicken

Sigh …. I’m in heaven ….

Thank you, Pris!

It’s been too long since Priscilla’s grandmother fed me my first taste of this very traditional Foo Chow (Hock Chew) dish. Stewed Red Wine Chicken. At the first look of it, I was a little scared. But after the first bite ….. I made the little old lady happy by asking for a second helping. Or maybe she just thought I was such a greedy girl.

She’d passed away two years ago. Bless her soul. 

There goes my chance of having more of this wonderful dish, or so I thought. 

I did give the commercial ones a try and they have never been up to par. It’s either too sweet or too sour. Seriously, I thought this was a difficult dish to make. 

Another friend made some for me when she’d got a homemade batch of the wine and lees. And I went off to heaven again. Sigh … will I ever be able to make this myself?

Then Priscilla came for a visit and brought me a bottle of homemade red wine and lees (made by her niece), recipe handed down from grandma! Gosh … I didn’t know if I could pull this off. 

Well waddaya know? I did. I know it doesn’t look like the real thing. Hey, it’s my first attempt but the taste is just as heavenly as I remembered it. And you know, it isn’t rocket science. In fact, I took the lazy way out and just dumped everything in the slow cooker.

You’re suppose to sauté some ginger for garnish and brown the chicken pieces before stewing. Oh what the heck. 

By the way, this isn’t red wine made from grapes. It’s made from red glutinous rice. So, basically, it’s a rice wine with a glaringly vibrant deep red. That’s why it’s so scary looking. 

INGREDIENTS

Half a chicken, cut into large chunks

1 heaped tbs Chinese glutinous red wine lees

1 cup Chinese red wine

1 tbs soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbs finely grated ginger or ginger juice

5 - 6 pieces thick sliced old ginger

METHOD

(Like I said I did the lazy easy way)

Marinade chicken pieces with the lees, sesame oil and grated ginger. 

Leave for 30 mins to an hour

Plonk chicken into slow cooker.

Add sliced ginger, Chinese red wine and soy sauce.

Set slow cooker to High and cook for about 2 - 3 hours or until chicken is cooked. 

(You don’t want to overcook the chicken or it’ll fall off the bone)

Serve as is with fluffy white rice or the traditional way, over cooked rice vermicelli.

*What I’d learnt from this dish. It isn’t in the cooking. It’s in the wine making. Good wine makes good stew.

The commercial stuff …. yuk. Chinese glutinous red wine making is an art.

Potato Broccoli Soup

I'm aching all over and not up to a heavy lunch. Ever had one of those colds that never really become a full blown sneeze-cough-fever-sore throat thingy? It's one of the worst feelings in the world! It just sits there (like my fat cat on my chest) and refuses to go away, leaving you feeling like there's a ton of bricks on your shoulders and the head too big for the neck to support (maybe it is :P). Groan.

Feed a cold and starve a fever ... or is it the other way round? I don't even know what's coming out ... cold? Fever? Whatever.

Liquids. Right then, soup it is.

The great thing about this soup is that the starch in the potatoes thickens the soup naturally without having to add any additional cornflour or thickeners.

INGREDIENTS

2 large-ish Russet potatoes / or any floury potatoes

2 - 3 cups stock (chicken/vegetable)

1 onion, finely diced

1 - 2 tbs butter

Broccoli florets, blanched

fresh grated nutmeg

cayenne pepper

fresh ground black pepper

salt to taste

1/2 cup or more milk / cream

METHOD

Peel the potatoes, boil and mash them up. Put aside.

Melt butter in a pan and saute the chopped onions until it's soft and translucent, not browned.

Add the stock and the mashed potatoes and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer until thickened.

Using a hand blender, buzz it a few times until you get a smooth consistency.

Reheat if you prefer your soup scalding hot (like most Chinese, ouch).

Stir in milk or cream.

Season with fresh ground black pepper, fresh ground nutmeg and cayenne pepper.

Toss in a handful of blanched broccoli florets.

Great with some garlic toast or crusty bread.

Aaahhhh ... better than a hot pack.

*Note: If you prefer a bit of bite in your soup, add in one or two boiled and diced waxy potato at the end.