Pieces of gently poached chicken slices are served in aromatic and spicy Sichuan sauce.
I remember seeing this on the menu when we went to a Sichuan restaurant a while ago. The waitress highly recommend it and so we tried it and we got hooked to this date.
What is Sichuan kou shui ji ?
“Mouth-watering chicken” in Chinese cuisine is known as “口水鸡” (Kou Shui Ji), which is also commonly translated as “Sichuan Mouth-watering Chicken” or “Salivating Chicken.” It is a popular cold-dish appetizer from the Sichuan province of China. It is named as such because the dish whets your appetite and makes your mouth water. The chicken is gently poached and then sliced or shredded and then smothered in aromatic, spicy, savory, numbing chili sauce. The dish can be served room temperature or presented as a cold dish.
Sichuan Kou Shui Ji (Mouthwatering Chicken)
Ingredients
- 6 pieces chicken drumsticks
- 5 slices fresh ginger
- 10 g Sichuan peppercorns
- 3 stalks green onion
- 1 bay leaf
Spicy sauce: (adjust the taste to your preference)
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp shaoxing wine
- 1 Tbsp Chinese black vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 clove garlic finely minced
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1 tsp ground Sichuan peppercorns
- 2 Tbsp chicken broth from poaching the chicken
- ¼ cup chili oil or homemade chili oil.
- Pinch of salt as needed
Toppings:
- 1 green onion finely chopped
- 1 red chili seeded, finely chopped
- ⅓ cup roasted peanuts
- 1 Tbsp white sesame seeds
- Cilantro leaves
Instructions
Poach the chicken:
- Add the chicken pieces, green onion, slices of ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, and bay leaf into a large pot. Add water, just enough to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to medium and cover the pot and let them gently simmer for 10 minutes
- After 10 minutes, turn off the heat and leave the chicken pieces in the pot, covered, for about 6-8 minutes.
- Prepare a large bowl of ice-cold water with some ice cubes and keep this cold in the fridge
- After 6-8 minutes, use a chopstick to poke the thickest part of the chicken to see if any blood oozing out. If the juice run clear, then the chicken is done poaching. If it's still bloody, let the chicken sit for another 5 minutes or so
Soak poached chicken in ice-cold water:
- Remove the chicken pieces and put in the ice-cold water and let them soak for 10 minutes. This stops the cooking process and also produce a smooth tender meat
Slice or shred the chicken:
- After 10 minutes, remove from ice-cold water. You can keep the chicken skin and remove the bone and slice the meat into slices
- I choose to remove the skin and shred the chicken meat instead
Prepare the sauce:
- Combine ingredients for the sauce in a bowl. Have a taste and adjust to your preference. It should be spicy, numbing, and savory
Assembling:
- If you shred the chicken meat like I did, toss the shredded meat in the sauce so they are well-coated. Transfer to a serving plate
- If you slice the chicken meat, transfer the meat slices to a serving plate and pour the sauce over it. Use a spoon to scoop some of the sauce to make sure the chicken pieces are coated with it
- Add the toppings and garnish with a few sprigs of cilantro leaves. Serve at room temperature or serve chilled
Nutrition
How to poach the chicken for kou shui ji
1. Add the chicken pieces, green onion, slices of ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, and bay leaf into a large pot. Add water, just enough to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil and skim off some scums that arise
2. Then lower the heat to medium to let it gently simmer and cover the pot. Let it simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, turn off the heat and leave the chicken pieces in the pot, covered, for about 6-8 minutes.
3. Prepare a large bowl of ice-cold water with some ice cubes and keep this cold in the fridge. After 6-8 minutes, use a chopstick to poke the thickest part of the chicken to see if any blood oozing out. If the juice run clear, then the chicken is done poaching. If it’s still bloody, let the chicken sit for another 5 minutes or so
4. Remove the chicken pieces and put in the ice-cold water and let them soak for 10 minutes. This stops the cooking process and also produces a smooth tender meat
5. After 10 minutes, remove from ice-cold water. You can keep the chicken skin and remove the bone and slice the meat into slices. I choose to remove the skin and shred the chicken meat instead
6. You can prepare the sauce by combining all the ingredients in a bowl and then toss the shredded chicken with the sauce and then topped with crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, chili, green onion and cilantro leaves
How to serve
Kou Shui Ji is usually served cold or at room temperature, making it a delightful choice for hot summer days.
Did you make this kou shui ji recipe?
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2 comments
I made a somewhat pared-down version (balsamic instead of black vinegar, white wine for Shaoxing, cheapo frozen chicken breast, and my chili oil was a home-made one so the flavor profile won’t be consistent) but overall, this is a super-delicious, fairly-easy dish, and great for a hot day. I put mine on a bed of lettuce, and it sort of became a salad hahaha. Usually I just cook for myself, so I wasn’t sure if I wanted to mix up the sauce and chicken right away, or right before each serving, but it was quite fine mixed-up ahead of time. I’d happily recommend this for make-ahead meal-planning, as a light meat dish, or even a garnish! I DEFINITELY want to make it properly when I restock my Asian specialty items, but in the meantime, I could eat this again and again!
I couldn’t be happier to know this is another winner for you even with some substitutions 🙂 It is actually quite a forgiving recipe! It’s one of my kids’ favorites. Usually they are quite particular when it comes to chicken dishes lol!