Finger-licking Three Cup Chicken is a tender braised chicken in sesame oil, rice wine and soy sauce with Thai basil.
By Shannon Lim
The recipe Three Cup Chicken originates from 3 cups (or portions) of soy sauce, sesame oil & rice wine each. But each household has its own version that does not always equate to 3 equal cups (or portions) of each ingredient. And some use Thai basil instead of spring onion in the dish. As I have both plants, I use both in my dish to make the best out of all recipes. This recipe works best with on the bone-in chicken pieces, the flavours of a dish with bone-in chicken is more intense. 
Three Cup San Bei Ji Chicken with Thai Basil
- Total Time: 17 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
Finger-licking Three Cup Chicken is a tender braised chicken in sesame oil, rice wine and soy sauce with Thai basil.
Ingredients
- 500g (1 lb) Chicken Drumsticks – cut into chunks (I use whole drumsticks for photography purposes. You can also use chicken drumettes or wings)
- 2 tablespoon Sesame Oil
- 1–2 inch Ginger – thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic – finely chopped
- 60ml (¼ cup) Shaoxing Wine (cooking rice wine)
- 2 tablespoon light Soy Sauce (or Tamari for gluten free option)
- 2 tablespoon Water
- 2 stalks of spring onions – cut into 2 inch pieces
- Small bunch of Thai basil
Instructions
- Place sesame oil, ginger, garlic and half of spring onions into a huge wok (or pan) on medium heat, for 1 minute to let the aromatic ginger and garlic infuse the oil.
- Then add the chicken to the wok all in one even layer, so every piece gets seared equally on both sides. Don’t over-crowd the wok.
- Once both sides are browned, stir in cooking wine, soy sauce and water. Cover the wok and simmer for 15 minutes to get the chicken cooked through.
- After 15 minutes, remove the cover and turn up the heat to rapidly reduce the sauce. If there sauce is dried up, add a splash of water. Stir the chicken until they turn a rich, dark colour.
- Toss in Thai basil and remaining spring onion and stir 1-2 times to quickly wilt the herbs.
- Plate and serve immediately. I toss in a few raw Thai basil because the flavours of raw herb is more intense.
Notes
Recipe adapted from The Woks of Life
If you want to use whole drumstick, cook the chicken for an extra 5 more minutes before adding Thai basil
- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Main
- Cuisine: Taiwanese
