Cooking With Pixian Doubanjiang: Braised Chicken

Sichuan braised chicken with chestnut and shiitake (板栗烧鸡, bǎnlì shāojī) in a dutch oven requires minimal babysitting for maximum flavor. Ma’s side of the family prepares shaoji with whole chicken and traditional taro obbligato, but this recipe combines bone-in chicken legs, roasted chestnuts and dried shiitake with the usual Pixian hongyou douban for everyday shaoji (within the hour!).

The fact that we now call this dish “everyday” says it all. One godless fall day in her early youth, Mala Mama and her two older brothers were holding down the frontline of dinner preparation while the adults were out of the house, taking care of some business now long-forgotten.

The task? Slaughter and dress the chicken.

Although cleaning and defeathering were common enough chores for the kids, the adults always handled the killing. That day, younger brother held down the chicken, older brother wielded the meat cleaver, sister stood watch, and everyone got the scare of their lives when the knife came down and their chicken sprung back to physiological life, running around the courtyard headless and full-tilt.

The point is, grabbing a parcel of slaughtered, plucked, processed and packaged free-range chicken legs from the fridge and eating banli shaoji within the hour is a lot less work (and emotional scarring) these days. Not to mention you don’t have to raise the chicken first. So by previous standards, this shaoji almost braises itself.

Soft, succulent shiitake is roasted chestnut’s toothsome foil in banli shaoji’s supporting lineup. Although Ma loves her braised whole chicken and taro with all the nostalgia of a woman who now recalls headless chicken fondly, even she admits my version is tastier. So the jury’s in: Sichuan braised chicken belongs in your dutch oven and on your dinner table.

We use commoners’ red oil doubanjiang in our recipe because that’s what was available to Ma growing up. Besides, we think the lighter taste suits chicken best. Use whatever dried chilis you have, but if you like things less hot, leave them whole instead of chopping. If the seeds aren’t exposed (or if they’re separated out), then the dish won’t be as spicy.

For the fastest meal prep, cold-soak dried 香菇 (xiānggū) shiitake mushrooms in the morning so you can skip straight to chopping and slicing come supper. If you forget, or if you found this recipe at 5 p.m. (hello! welcome!), it’ll take you closer to the full hour to make this dish. However, since much of that time is hands-off, you won’t have to cut any corners to throw rice in the steamer and get a whole plate of veggies on the table to serve alongside your shaoji.

For more recipes cooking with our Pixian doubanjiang, try my Chao Larou Stir-fry with Sichuan Wind-Cured Pork Belly. Also try Taylor’s Wok-Fried Snapper and infinitely versatile Super Sichuan Stir-Fry Sauce!