Dim Sum · FFET10266
Shi zhi feng zhao (chicken feet in black bean sauce)
Chicken feet in black bean sauce is a Cantonese dim sum dish: the feet are fried, soaked in ice water to puff, then braised and steamed until soft.
A round white porcelain plate holds soft, wrinkled chicken feet coated in glossy brown sauce, alongside black fermented beans, garlic, ginger, shallot and star anise, with wooden chopsticks resting beside the plate.
The small dishes served with tea in a tea house.
Chicken feet in black bean sauce is a chicken-feet dish of Cantonese dim sum. The feet are fried or dried so the skin blisters, soaked in ice water to puff, braised in a sauce of fermented black beans and steamed in a small dish until soft. This fried, steamed and stewed preparation is found in Guangdong and Hong Kong; feng zhao is a name for chicken feet. No origin or date was found.
What
Chicken feet in black bean sauce are a Cantonese dim sum dish: the feet are fried, soaked in ice water so the skin puffs, braised in a sauce of fermented black beans, garlic, soy sauce and oyster sauce, then steamed until the skin is soft and the meat tender. Feng zhao, meaning phoenix claws, is a name for chicken feet.1,2,3
When
The dish's origin and date remain undetermined; related materials include a 1998 newspaper feature and a 2010 list, but neither establishes when this dim sum dish originated.1
How
The feet are blanched, deep-fried (or dried) until the skin blisters, soaked in ice water so it puffs, braised in the black bean sauce for about 45 minutes and then steamed in a small dish for about 10 minutes. The 2 recipes differ in blanching, frying, ice-water and resting times; see the recipes below.2,3
Why
Soaking the fried feet in ice water makes the skin puff up; feng zhao is a name for chicken feet.1,2,3
Impact and influence
Hong Kong was once a trading hub for chicken feet, with imports from more than 30 countries; evidence for this claim is weak, so it serves only as background.1
No tale about this food has been found.
Grandma Li
This is a simplified home version, not the traditional restaurant method.
This is my home version of chicken feet in black bean sauce: frying, an ice-water soak, a braise and a steam, all kept, with a few seasonings left out. The weight of the feet and the black beans follow a recipe blog by a named author, whose recipe also uses hoisin sauce, honey, star anise and optional peanuts; I leave out the peanuts. Another recipe by a named author adds doubanjiang, and I leave that out. The amounts of the sauce seasonings are my own choices. Both recipes braise 45 minutes and steam 10, and I do the same.
Ingredients
- Chicken feet 600 g, nail tips snipped off
- Fermented black beans 30 g, rinsed and roughly chopped
- Garlic 4 cloves, crushed
- Ginger 3 slices
- Shallot 1, sliced
- Star anise 1 piece
- Shaoxing wine 30 ml
- Light soy sauce 30 ml
- Dark soy sauce 5 ml
- Oyster sauce 30 ml
- Sugar 10 g
- Water, for braising about 300 ml
- Cooking oil, for frying the feet enough to come halfway up the feet
- Cooking oil, for the aromatics 15 ml
Steps
- Wash the feet, blanch them in boiling water for about 3 minutes, drain, then dry them thoroughly with paper towels. The two recipes blanch for 2 and 5 minutes, and I take a time in between.
- Heat the oil in a deep pot and lower the feet in carefully. Turn them and fry until the skin blisters and turns light golden, about 3 minutes.
- Lift the feet out into a large bowl of ice water and soak them for about 30 minutes, until the skin puffs and wrinkles. One recipe soaks for 10 minutes and the other for 1 hour, and I take a time in between.
- In another pot heat 15 ml of oil, add the garlic, ginger, shallot, star anise and black beans and fry for about 1 minute until fragrant; add the wine, light and dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and about 300 ml of water and bring to a boil.
- Add the feet, turn the heat low, cover and braise for 45 minutes, turning a few times and adding a little water if it runs low. The feet should be braised until the skin is soft and the meat is about to leave the bone.
- Transfer the feet with the sauce to a heatproof dish, set it in a steamer over boiling water and steam for 10 minutes, until it is hot all the way through.
Tips
- Both recipes put the feet into ice water right after frying so the skin puffs up, so I do not skip that step.
- I always dry the feet well before they go into the oil so it spits less; this is my own habit.
Allergens: soy, wheat, shellfish