Juicy chicken steamed in a gingery savory sauce with green onions. A quick and easy Chinese steamed chicken ready in 25 minutes with simple ingredients! A delicious, healthy main dish for the whole family to enjoy!
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Chinese Steamed Chicken features tender chicken thighs steamed in a braising liquid that consists of soy sauce, green onion, fresh ginger, sesame oil, Shoaxing wine, sugar, cornstarch and pepper.
It's a popular Chinese dish that most households make. It's not one that you would commonly order at Chinese restaurants or for take out but it comes from Southern China.
Steamed chicken is known for being a light, healthy and delicious way to enjoy chicken since it's steamed and not fried in a lot of oil.
This dish brings back a lot of childhood memories for me as we often ate it growing up. My mother would always cook it for us using different parts of the chicken, such as the wings or a whole chicken.
We would serve this as a main dish over white rice with vegetables, like bok choy or any Asian greens in Chinese cuisine. It was delicious, satisfying and such an easy chicken recipe to make with simple ingredients.
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Boneless chicken thighs: I wouldn't recommend chicken breast. Boneless chicken thighs offer the best texture and flavor thanks to the dark meat. You can also use skin-on chicken thighs but make sure to de-bone it or pork shoulder, pork ribs or pork belly.
Braising Sauce
- Green onion: or spring onion
- Fresh ginger
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute a gluten-free soy sauce of your choice.
- Dark soy sauce: this is thicker and darker than regular soy sauce.
- Sesame oil: for that nutty flavor! If you're allergic, omit it.
- Shaoxing wine: a Chinese rice cooking wine. Or substitute with Dry Sherry. For a non-alcoholic or gluten-free version, substitute with any broth.
- White granulated sugar: to balance out the salty flavors.
- Cornstarch: to make the chicken extra tender as it retains the moisture in the meat.
- Black pepper or white pepper
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients or check Amazon.
Required Equipment
- steamer pot or bamboo steamer basket with a large wok or large deep pan
Expert Tips
- Use fresh chicken thighs! Make sure the chicken is not expired at the grocery store and I even check for gamey odors. If you can smell a strong odor, put it back and get a fresher one.
- Use skin-on chicken thighs for even better results! The skin on the chicken offers additional fat and flavor.
- Don't skip the cornstarch because this tenderizes the meat by retaining the moisture in the meat.
- Use a digital cooking thermometer to check if the meat is done to avoid over steaming the chicken.
- Use oven mitts to place or remove the bowl of chicken into the steamer to avoid burning yourself.
Instructions
- Chop chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces or ¼-inch thin strips.
- In a large bowl, combine the braising sauce ingredients. Mix in the chicken pieces.
- Pour chicken and the sauce into deep plate that is suitable for steaming. Set aside.
- Fill a large wok or large pan halfway with water and place a wire rack into the center of it. If you have a bamboo steamer, you can use that instead. Cover and bring to a boil.
- Once it reaches boiling point, carefully lower the bowl of chicken onto the wire rack or into the steamer using oven mitts to avoid burning yourself.
- Cover and steam chicken for 20-25 minutes on medium high heat until you reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F with a digital instant read thermometer or until juices run clear.
- Remove the chicken from steamer with oven mitts and serve!
Storage
- Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, microwave for 2-3 minutes or re-steam on medium heat until warm.
- Freezer-friendly? Cooked Chinese steamed chicken can be frozen for up to 3 months. Just let it cool down and store it in a freezer-safe bag with the sauce. To reheat, thaw it and reheat in the microwave or re-steam until hot.
Pairing Suggestions
Chinese steamed chicken serves well with:
- white rice, brown rice or cauliflower rice
- plain noodles or soup noodles
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
FAQ
This can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To enjoy, reheat it in the microwave or in a pan on the stovetop on medium heat.
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📖 Recipe
Chinese Steamed Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 boneless chicken thighs skin-on or skinless both work
Braising Sauce
- 1 green onion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon ginger thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoon regular soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ tablespoon Shaoxing Cooking Wine or dry sherry wine
- ½ teaspoon white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper or white pepper
Instructions
- Chop chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces or ¼-inch thin strips.
- In a large bowl, combine the braising sauce ingredients. Mix in the chicken pieces.
- Pour chicken and the sauce into deep plate that is suitable for steaming. Set aside.
- Fill a large wok or large pan halfway with water and place a wire rack into the center of it. If you have a bamboo steamer, you can use that instead. Cover and bring to a boil.
- Once it reaches boiling point, carefully lower the bowl of chicken onto the wire rack or into the steamer using oven mitts to avoid burning yourself.
- Cover and steam chicken for 20-25 minutes on medium high heat until you reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F with a digital instant read thermometer or until juices run clear.
- Remove the chicken from steamer with oven mitts and serve!
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