Xinjiang Big Plate Chicken

Ingredients

• Szechuan pepper, bay leaves, mace, bird's eye chili peppers, garlic, green onions
• Oil, salt, soy sauce, oyster sauce, cooking wine (optional: beer), white sugar
• Chicken (thighs are best), potatoes, bell peppers and sweet peppers (can be omitted for better color)

Steps

1. Cut the meat into chunks. Soak in plain water + salt for 5 minutes to remove blood and fishy smell, then drain.
2. Wash green onions, garlic, chili peppers, potatoes, etc. Peel the potatoes.
3. Cut the white part of the green onions into long sections (about 4cm each), and cut the bell peppers and bird's-eye chili peppers into chunks.
4. Cut the potatoes into 'rolling' potato chunks (cut one slice, then roll the potato, cut again; a chunk should be roughly 4cm * 4cm).
5. Make the caramelized sugar glaze: Add oil to the wok, then add white sugar. Stir with a spatula until the sugar melts and turns a caramel yellow. Pour the drained chicken into the wok and stir-fry to color it.
6. Add Szechuan pepper, bay leaves, mace, bird's-eye chili peppers, etc., and stir-fry.
7. Add 5g salt, 7ml soy sauce, 10g oyster sauce, 100g cooking wine, and pour in 1 liter of clear water (cooking wine can be replaced by beer).
8. Turn to medium heat, bring the water to a boil, then turn to medium-low heat to stew until flavorful.
9. When the water reduces until the chicken is almost exposed, place the potatoes on top of the liquid in the pot: Be careful not to stir the potatoes; just cover them on the surface. Otherwise, moving them to the bottom easily causes sticking to the pan. Cover the pot and continue stewing. After a while, add the green onions, bell peppers, and sweet peppers, and continue stewing.
10. When the sauce has reduced sufficiently, you can flip the chicken. Let the potatoes absorb the sauce thoroughly. Finally, turn off the heat and serve.