Yellow Braised Chicken (Huangmenji)

Ingredients

• Chicken legs
• Mushrooms (dried mushrooms are best)
• Bell pepper
• Fresh ginger slices
• Dried red chilies
• Salt
• Cooking wine
• White pepper powder
• White sugar
• Soy sauce
• MSG
• Potato (optional)

Steps

1. ### Preparation
2. Wash the chicken legs and cut them into chunks about **4cm** in size.
3. Slice the ginger and cut the dried red chilies into small circles (**rings**).
4. Slice the mushrooms and cut the bell peppers into long, thin strips resembling **horse hooves**. If using dried mushrooms, wash off the dust and soak overnight in water, reserving the soaking water.
5. If using potatoes, cut them into large chunks (rough cut) similar in size to the chicken pieces.
6. ### Stir-frying
7. Caramelizing the sugar: Pour some oil into the wok. Add the sugar while the oil is still cold. (This step has a bit of a learning curve; beginners can skip this and use dark soy sauce instead when stirring the chicken).
8. Heat over low heat slowly. As the oil temperature rises, the sugar will begin to melt and turn a darker brown (stir continuously during this process to prevent the sugar from burning).
9. Pour in the chicken pieces immediately. Switch to high heat and stir-fry quickly! Pour in the cooking wine and continue stir-frying for a moment.
10. Add the ginger slices and dried red chilies.
11. Add the soy sauce and mix well.
12. Pour in either the soaking water or clear water, until it covers the chicken.
13. Add the mushroom slices, white pepper powder, salt, and potato.
14. Stir everything evenly, cover the wok, and simmer on medium-low heat for **15–20 minutes**. If possible, transfer the mixture to a casserole.
15. Once the chicken is soft and tender and the sauce is thickened (do not reduce the sauce too much), add the bell pepper at the end.
16. Add the MSG and stir everything evenly, then turn off the heat! The bell pepper should be slightly cooked, but do not stir-fry it for too long.