pressure steaming | Bewitching Kitchen

Sometimes a recipe intrigues me. I am not sure I will like it, or might have issues with the method of preparation, but something tells me I must give it a try. I saw this one at chinasichuanfood, placed an order for the fermented black beans (featured in my latest In My Kitchen post), took a deep breath and went to work. We simply loved it! Plus, it gave me a totally new use for the pressure cooker, exploring the steam setting. Do you need a pressure cooker to make it? No, you don’t. But it gave a delicious, velvet texture to the meat. We ate like kings. Or maybe I should say emperors.

STEAMED CHICKEN IN BLACK BEAN SAUCE
(adapted from chinasichuanfood)

6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut in small pieces
1 Tablespoon sherry wine (or Chinese cooking wine)
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon hoisin sauce sauce
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
2 spring onions
5 slices of ginger
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
2 Tablespoons fermented black beans, finely minced
2 Tablespoons peanut oil
shiitake mushrooms, amount to taste, or a mixture of mushrooms
sesame oil and soy sauce to finish

Make a marinade with the sherry, soy sauce, hoisin, salt and black pepper. Add the chicken pieces, mix well, add the spring onions and ginger pieces. Place in the fridge for several hours.

Discard the spring onion and pieces of ginger. Add the cornstarch to the meat and gently mix. Place the mushrooms in the bottom of a steamer, then add the chicken on top. Spread the fermented black beans all over the chicken pieces. Heat the oil until it is starting to smoke. Pour immediately over the fermented beans, it will sizzle.

Steam the whole mixture of mushroom and meat for 15 minutes. If using a pressure cooker, add enough water (a little over 1 cup) in the pan to make sure it will have enough to steam for the required time.

Remove the meat from the steamer and serve, drizzling a bit of sesame oil and soy sauce.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I used 6 pieces of chicken and that was the maximum amount my steamer would hold. It was enough for our dinner and we had leftovers that I claimed for my lunch next day. The texture of the meat is perfect for my taste. I normally prefer to stir-fry breast meat, saving the thighs for the grill, but steaming is a real game-changer. Once again, not the type of recipe that will win beauty contests, but the flavor was fantastic. It will definitely go into our regular rotation. You can go into the original website and watch a nice video of the whole preparation.