There is nothing quite so classic in Chinese cuisine as the five-spice powder. Traditionally, five-spice powder is symbolic of the five elements of Chinese lore. These five spices represent a blend of the five elements of Chinese cuisine: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and spicy. While the traditional blend consists of star anise, fennel, cloves, cinnamon, and peppers (preferably Szechuan peppers), the concentration of these spices varies. In some instances, ingredients such as citrus and ginger are also added.
While you can certainly purchase the five-spice powder, I prefer to make my own. Roasting and grinding these herbs and whole spices not only make the chicken flavorful, but it also leaves the kitchen aromatic. One of the practical things about the five-spice chicken is that it can be made in a variety of ways. It can be roasted, pan fired, stir fried, baked, grilled, or even barbequed.
I have chosen to grill my five-spice chicken and serve it with rice cooked in coconut milk and fried anchovies. I feel that grilled chicken has an earthy fragrance that complements the coconut rice. While I love the flavor from coal-fired grills, I have chosen to use the convenience of an electric grill. The use of the water plate helps keep the chicken moist as I grill the chicken leg quarters. The comforting bite of this moist chicken served along with some steamed rice for Sunday lunch accompanied by fried anchovies is both healthy and tasteful. The tongue-latching taste from the freshly ground spices in the chicken will make you crave for more.
Five Spice Chicken
Equipment
- Indoor grill
Ingredients
For the five-spice powder:
- 1 tsp star anise
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1 tsp Szechuan pepper
For the marinade:
- 2 lean chicken leg quarters (cut up-optional)
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp five-spice powder
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- salt to taste
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp black pepper powder
- ¼ tsp white pepper powder
- ¾ tsp chili oil
Instructions
How to make the five spice powder:
- Roast and grind all the ingredients together to a fine powder and store in an airtight container or jar.
How to marinate the chicken:
- Remove the skin of the chicken and trim the fat.
- Make slits on the chicken and marinate the chicken by mixing all the ingredients of the marinade for at least an hour.
How to grill the chicken:
- Pre-heat the grill to 350oF. Place the chicken on the grill and cook for one hour by flipping them every 15 minutes.
- Grill until there is no pink color on the chicken. Garnish with scallions and serve with steamed rice.
Notes
- You can use store-bought five spice powder that comes in small bottles.
- Oyster sauce can be used, but it is optional.
- I like to dry roast the spices for the five-spice for a minute and then cool it completely and then powder them.
- You can stir-fry the chicken by using small bite-size boneless chicken pieces instead of the leg quarters or cut up the leg quarters at the joints into drumsticks and thighs.
- Baking in an oven is the other way that I have tried, and it yields a similar taste. Small chunks of chicken take lesser time to bake, grill or stir-fry than the leg quarters.
- What are other uses for the five-spice powder? It can be used in stir-fry vegetables.
- What spices can be used as substitutes for five-spice powder? You could use cinnamon, cloves, cayenne powder.
Nutrition
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