Chinese Braised Chicken with Mushrooms

chinese braised chicken with asian mushrooms thumbnail

5 from 4 votes

Chinese Braised Chicken with Mushrooms

This recipe for braised Chinese chicken is all about cozy, rich, hearty, and savory flavors. The chicken and shiitake mushrooms are cooked in a flavorful sauce, resulting in tender and juicy meat, making this dish a truly satisfying meal when served with rice or noodles.

Prep Time30

Cook Time35

Total Time1 5

Course: Main

Cuisine: Chinese

Servings:

Calories: 315kcal

Author: Joyce Lee

Ingredients

1 lb chicken thighs (bone-in) (approx. 4 chicken thighs, or 6 drums)
5-6 dried shiitake mushrooms (dried or fresh, can sub with straw or button mushrooms)
1 small onion
2 slices ginger
2 cloves garlic
2 star anise
2 bay leaves
2 stalks green onions

Braising Sauce

2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy (can sub with regular soy sauce)
1½ tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1½ tablespoons Shaoxing cooking wine
1¼ cups water reserved from mushroom soak (or water, or no sodium broth)
¾ cup white wine (or light beers like lagers. Can sub with low sodium broth.)

Instructions

Preparation

If you're using dried shiitake mushrooms, soak 5-6 dried shiitake mushrooms in hot water for about 30 minutes or until they are soft. I like to use a small bowl or plate to keep the mushrooms submerged in the water so they rehydrate more quickly.
Prepare the rest of the ingredients while you wait.
Slice 2 slices ginger and set it aside. Then peel and thinly slice 1 small onion and set it aside.
Peel 2 cloves garlic and smash it with the side of your knife. Keep them whole (don't worry they will melt into the braising liquid during braising.)
Cut 2 stalks green onions into 2-inch lengths. Cut the thick white parts again in half, lengthwise.
In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons oyster sauce, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon dark soy, 1½ tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, and 1½ tablespoons Shaoxing cooking wine. Set this braising sauce aside for later.
Once the mushrooms are soft and hydrated, rub the gills under running water to remove any grit, then cut off the stems and discard them.
Slice the mushrooms in half, set them aside for later, and don't forget to save the mushroom soaking water for the braise.

Brown the Chicken

Pat 1 lb chicken thighs (bone-in) dry, sprinkle a bit of salt on it, and set it aside.
Set a pot over the stove and set it to medium heat. Once the pot is hot, add oil.
Add the chicken thighs in skin side down and brown it for 30 seconds to a minute. Give it time to form a crust before you flip it.
Plate chicken and set aside.

Braise the Chicken

Add the sliced onions, sliced ginger, 2 star anise, and 2 bay leaves to the pot with the chicken drippings, and toast for 1-2 minutes. Do not add the garlic yet
Add ¾ cup white wine into the pot, and use a wooden spoon to scrape out the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. There's a lot of flavor in it, and it's called the fond. Do this for about 1-2 minutes, to cook out the alcohol as well.
Add the browned chicken, cut shiitake mushrooms, smashed garlic cloves, 1¼ cups water reserved from mushroom soak, and braising sauce into the pot and mix everything together. Make sure everything is submerged in the liquid, especially the chicken.
**Do not use the water near the bottom of the bowl, which may contain grit. If you don't have 1¼ cups of water from the leftover mushroom water, you can make up the difference with plain water or low-sodium chicken broth.
Let everything simmer together for about 20 minutes on medium-low heat with the lid on.
After 20 minutes, remove the lid and simmer for another 12-15 minutes to reduce the sauce to a syrupy consistency.
Flip the chicken to get flavor on the other side if it's not fully submerged in liquid.
After the sauce has thickened, add the green onions and stir everything for 1 minute until the green onions wilt.
Your Chinese braised chicken is now ready to be served. Enjoy it with steamed rice or your favorite noodles.

Notes

Dark Meat vs White Meat: For this Chinese braised chicken recipe, it's best to use bone-in, dark-meat chicken like drums, wings, and thighs. Dark meat stays tender and juicy during the braising process whereas white meat, such as breast will almost always create a dry dish.
Bone-In vs Boneless: The bone-in chicken adds extra flavor to the dish, but the bone also adds a natural gelatin to the sauce as well, which creates a syrupy, silkier sauce. An extra bonus is, bone-in chicken is also usually more inexpensive as well!
White Wine and Beer Suggestions: Since chicken is a delicate meat, and we won't be braising it a long period of time. If you're using wine, any type will work but I like to use Sauvignon Blanc because of it's dryness, which makes it slightly tart and helps cut the heaviness of this dish. If you're using beer, I highly suggest using a light beer. Darker and more flavorful beers will overpower the dish, and the bitterness will also come through in the sauce. Although IPAs (Indian Pale Ales) are not dark beers, please avoid using this beer because it's incredibly bitter. I like to use American light beers, blonde lagers and ales, pilsners, and wheat beers. If you don't want any alcohol in this, you can also sub low sodium broth for it as well.
Clean Mushrooms After It's Soak: I find it easiest to clean shiitake mushrooms after they have been soaked and is soft. Run the mushroom gills under running water and rub it gently to remove any grit.
Reserve Mushroom Water From Soak: For more extra flavor, you can use the water you used to soak the mushroom in place of the water/stock. Just make sure not to use the water at the bottom of the bowl, because grit and sand may be on the bottom.
Dry Chicken For Best Browning: Use paper towel to dry your chicken before you brown it. This creates a nicer crust.
Pot Size Is Important: I like to use a pot big enough to allow me to lay down all the chicken in a single layer. It's important that the pot isn't overly large because you need to submerge the chicken in liquid to braise, and if there is excess space, the braising liquid will not reduce because there is too much of it to evaporate within 20 minutes. (The image shown is a 9-inch pot with 4 chicken thighs.)
Reduce Cooking Time For Boneless Chicken, Drumsticks and Wings: If you use boneless chicken, drumsticks or wings, you will need to reduce the cooking time slightly since they will cook more quickly. I would reduce about 5 minutes from the initial braising time of 20 minutes.
Don't Over Braise: If you braise the chicken for more than the suggested time, the sauce will reduce and get thicker, but it also means it may also become incredibly salty. You'll know it's done, when after you reduce the sauce by simmering without the lid, the sauce becomes a thin syrupy consistency. Always do a taste test to make sure, if it tastes good, you're good to go!

Nutrition