Make Five Spice Chicken
by Marc Matsumoto on Feb 1, 2016
Tags
Chinese five spice powder is a blend of spices (often containing more than 5 spices) with the warm musty aroma of anise, cinnamon, cloves and pepper. It's a signature flavor of many Chinese dishes including Char Siu and Cantonese Roast Pork.
The addition of maltose (also known as rice syrup) to the marinade creates glossy glaze as the chicken roasts. While I prefer using maltose for its neutral taste and viscous texture, if you can't find it, a neutral tasting honey will work as well. By marinating the chicken in the sauce for a day or two it not only imbues a stunning mahogany shade to the chicken, it draws out excess liquid, giving the chicken a firm, almost duck-like texture.
Serve this five spice chicken over a bed of rice with some sauteed greens. If you want some extra sauce to pour over the chicken and rice, you can boil the remaining marinade, skimming off any foam that floats to the top until it's thick and glossy.
Marc Matsumoto is a culinary consultant and recipe repairman who shares his passion for good food through his website norecipes.com. For Marc, food is a life long journey of exploration, discovery and experimentation and he shares his escapades through his blog in the hopes that he inspires others to find their own culinary adventures. Marcs been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, and has made multiple appearances on NPR and the Food Network.