Wednesday, November 10, 2010

3 cups Chicken

This is another classic Chinese dish originated from Taiwan. The main ingredients for this dish are using 1 cup soy sauce, one cup of sesame oil, one cup of rice wine and a generous amount of Thai basil leaves. That is how it got its name 3 cups chicken (san bei ji) The first time I tasted this dish was when I went home last year and my BIL CK took me to a famous Taiwanese restaurant called Fong Lye. Once I tasted the dish I fell in love with it. So here is my version of 3 cups chicken but I didn’t use the whole cup of sesame oil and soy sauce. I think that is a bit too much for me but do feel free to adjust the amount of marinate to your liking.

Ingredients:

1 small chicken – around 2 pounds, clean, remove skin and cut into bite size pieces
5 slices of ginger
4 dried chilies – soak and remove seeds (optional)
1 small bunch Thai basil leaves
1 cup Chinese cooking wine
¾ cup soy sauce
4 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 thumb size rock sugar or 1 tbsp sugar


1. Marinate chicken with soy sauce, 2 tbsp sesame oil, cooking wine and dark soy sauce for at least 4 hours.
2. Heat up the remaining 2 tbsp sesame oil in a wok or claypot until sizzling hot. Add in the garlic, ginger and dry chili. Stir fry until fragrant. Add in the chicken pieces and continue to stir until chicken changes color.
3. Add in the rest of the marinade liquid and sugar. Bring it up to boil, cover and cook and turn down the heat and let it simmer slowly.
4. Cook until all the liquid almost disappear and chicken is done. Check seasonings Add in the basil stir and dish out or serve it in the claypot.


Note: For this dish you have to use Thai basil as it gives this dish a very nice flavor. If the dish gets too dry before it is cook you can add in extra cooking wine or water to it.

29 comments:

Ummi said...

Hello Gert, how are you? This one looks delicious, simple recipe yet tempting! May you have a great days ahead! Muaaahhh!

Shereen said...

Gert,
Thai basil leaves tu apa?It's not the one we use to make pesto,right?What is the Malay name?If don't have that Thai basil leaves,what can I use instead to get the same gold standart?I want to cook this for the longest time but somehow I always forget...lol.

Angie said...

Gert, Fong Lye is my favorite Taiwanese restaurant. I love their 3 cups chicken, and I made it once too with less sesame oil. Yum!

Cheah said...

Delicious right? I think I would like to have a meal at Fong Lye when I go to KL next!

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

I have yet to taste this 3 cups chicken, but I can imagine how delicious with added all these sauces..

Elin said...

Gertrude...I have yet to try this out. I know it must be good...basil leaves and those other ingredients will give a great flavor to the chicken :) After seeing that you and Cheah loves it so much...mmm I don't want to be left out :) will make this dish soon.

nnatty said...

This is great recipe!! I can't wait to try it out.

WanYgBest said...

basil is daun selasih if i'm not mistaken...

simple dish..i must try it someday...thanks for sharing

Aunty Liew said...

I have saw this dish in one of the Taiwan's cooking show,but have yet to try out this. I think if cook with the sotong also taste nice.

WendyinKK said...

Selasih is Thai Basil and Kemangi is Lemon Basil.
I love 3 cups chicken, made it twice oredi and everybody loves it.
I heard Thai basil is hard to get there, right?

Honey Bee Sweets said...

Gert, I used to make this at least twice a month while I was still KL because I have a Basil plant. Now it's so hard to get fresh nice basil, really miss the dish. Seeing yours just made me crave for it!! BTW, hope you are feeling better now!

pigpigscorner said...

I like this dish too! The basil adds such a nice flavour.

mr. pineapple man said...

that looks amazing...and the color is just perfect!

Anonymous said...

Gert
This is my favourite dish esp with lots of basil. Yours really look yummy. I think its time for me to look for a good claypot.
Take care
melanie

Little Inbox said...

I like my 3 cups chicken with little Thai basil leaves, but lots of dried chilies. :)

Carpensm @ A Life Without Ice Cream said...

Looks super yummy! I've been rather Thai Inspired myself these days!

3 hungry tummies said...

One of my favourite chicken dishes, so simple too!

Acquired said...

Sounds delicious. I've heard of 3 cups chicken before but had now idea of ingredients.

Now I can make it too, thanks for sharing.

Home Cooking said...

its looks so yummy

yd said...

This looks really yummy. Keep hearing about this but have yet to try this though.

ijayuji said...

hi gerttt!!! how r u my fren? hope u doing well, waaaaa..long time tak dtg sini byk yg i missed, nak selak page by page dulu lepas ni yg pasti yg tertwan ituu adalah kek yg kat bwh tu :D ayam ni pun suke jugak! simple n looks yummy!

Bits said...

I found many foodies like to make this dish. It must be a signature dish, I would like to try it soon.

Anonymous said...

Heard quite abit about this dish. A much loved Taiwanese dish. Must give it a try one day.

Melissa said...

I can't get Thai basil where I live. Can I use regular basil in a pinch? I wanna make this soon. I love this kind of food.

ICook4Fun said...

Ummi, I am doing well. Thank you for asking. You too have a great weekend.

Shereen, Thai basil is daun selasih. Hope you can get it in NZ if not you can always plant some. If you can get it just put some spring onions.

Angie, you ate there too when you went home? Yes I think their 3 cups chicken are the best. Did you taste a hint of marmite in it?

Cheah, you have to try Fong Lye the next time you are in KL.

Sonia, yes especially the sauce. Great with rice.

Elin, it is time to try it out since Joanna is home :)

nnatty, hope you like it.

WanygBest, yes it is called daun selasih.

Wai Kitt, yes should be great with sotong or tofu :)

ICook4Fun said...

Wendy, Thai Basil is easily available here. I too planted some during summer as the grow fast.

Bee Bee, Thai basil is pretty easy to plant. Can you get the seeds there? If not let me know I will bring some for you when I go back home.

Pigpigscorner, yes for this dish it's all about the Thai Basil.

Mr Pineapple man, thank you.

Melanie, thank you.

ICook4Fun said...

Little Inbox, I like mine spicy too. The next time I cook this I am going to add more :)

Carpensm, hope you try out this dish.

3 hungry tummies, my fav too :)

Acquired, you are welcome.

Sweet & Spicy, thanks.

YD, hope you will try it out soon.

Ijayuji, apa kabar? Lama jugak tak nampak you kat sini. Hope everything is well with you too. Kalau you nak masak ayam ni you have to omit lah the Chinese rice wine :)

Bit of taste, hope you like this.

Mei Teng, yes it is.

Melissa, maybe you can replace it with some spring onions rather than the regular basil.

art is in the kitchen said...

This is such a great recipe for chicken. I've got to try it. I tried your spiral puff a month ago and it was a raving success! Thank the step-by-step photos they help a lot. Cheers!

Beachlover's Kitchen said...

I like san bei ji too!!! especially your is Or-Or one!! my 1st try san bei ji was from a Taiwanese restaurant called Formosa in Queens..i think taiwanese doesn't use alot of spices or dark sauce...but I still like our own version which is sweeter and darker!! give me a bowl of rice now!!