Book of Days Tales

Today used to be Father’s Day in China (before the revolution) and is still a day to honor fathers in certain Chinese-speaking areas, including Taiwan.  The date is 8/8, and in Chinese “eight eight” (bābā), sounds like the affectionate “daddy” (bàba) – only the tones are different.  This kind of wordplay is quite common in Chinese.  For example, the number 4 is considered inauspicious because it sounds like the word for “death.” Let’s have a specifically Taiwanese dish to celebrate.  This is three cup chicken (san bei ji 三杯鸡), chicken pieces braised in a mix of soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice wine (the three cups).  It is best to use a wok for the cooking, but a large skillet will work if you do not own a wok. 

Ingredients

    1 tablespoon vegetable oil

    1 ½ lbs skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into chunks

    ½ cup sesame oil

    10 slices fresh ginger

    2 cloves garlic, sliced

    ½ cup Chinese rice wine

    ⅓ cup soy sauce

    ¼ cup water

    3 tablespoons white sugar

    ½ cup fresh Thai basil leaves

    3 dried whole red chilies

Instructions

Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until lightly browned on all sides. Remove the chicken from the wok and set aside.

Heat the sesame oil in the wok. Add the ginger and garlic and cook quickly until they become aromatic (about 30 seconds). Return the reserved chicken, and add the rice wine, soy sauce, water, and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until there is only ¼ cup of liquid left in the skillet.

Stir in the basil and chiles. Increase the heat to medium and continue cooking until the liquid is heavily reduced and coats the chicken pieces. 

Serve with rice.