Chinese steamed chicken with ginger and green onion.
I have made this steamed chicken recipe several times this summer. Steaming is a really popular cooking method in every Chinese kitchen. Steamed dishes are simple, quick and always tender in texture. For poached version, please check white cut chicken.
This is ginger and green onion steamed chicken with my own tested dipping sauce. People in Guangdong and Guangxi province love to serve this chicken directly since the steamed chicken keeps the natural taste of a high quality chicken. During my high school time, I love to dip to some chili powder directly. You decide your way.
Preparation:
Spread the marinating sauce evenly on the cleaned chicken—every place. Put ginger and green onion shreds on top and marinating at least for 30 minutes. If you are not in hurry, I would suggest preparing the chicken in the morning and making this as lunch or dinner.
Steaming tips:
When cooking steamed rice with electric cooker, I always love to steam some fresh vegetable or meat with the inside steamer. This method is highly recommend to simply the process and save energy.
- Half of a whole chicken , around 1 and 1/2 pound
- 1 tbsp. ginger shreds
- 1 tbsp. green onion shreds , white part
- 1 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 1 tsp. Chinese cooking wine
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 4 tbsp. water
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tbsp. chopped green onions
- 1 tbsp. sesame oil
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Clean the chicken and then spread the marinating sauce evenly on both sides.
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Lay ginger shreds and green onion shreds over to marinate at least 30 minutes. Then place in your steamer. I am using the steamer of my electric rice cooker. If you are using a steamer with wok or pot, steam with high fire around 20 to 30 minutes until soft (or you can easily insert a chop sticker in). Transfer out and cut into chunks of your favorite size. Decorate with green onions.
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In a sauce pan, heat up 1 tablespoon sesame oil and stir fry chopped garlic and green onion until aroma. And then add oyster sauce, light soy sauce and water. Mix well and bring all the content to a boiling. Transfer to dipping bowl and cool down a little bit.
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Serve steamed chicken with dipping sauce.
Wow this steamed chicken definitely takes me back to my childhood.. my Chinese grandfather would always make something similar for me. Thanks for reminding me how delicious Chinese chicken is, definitely need to recreate the recipe asap!
Thanks Thalia,
Try it and I hope you love it the same as me too.
I have really been into chicken But when I saw this recipe for steamed chicken. I thought give it ago. What can I say but yummy yummy and a big thank you. Regards Peter
Thanks Peter for your lovely feedback. I feel so honored and happy to know that you love this recipe.
Really yummy. Fist time I tried it….Thanx
Thanks Parmjit for your feedback. Glad to konw you like it.
I love this recipe! Such a quick and easy take on Steamed Chicken. Thanks for sharing 🙂
You are the most welcome. Faith. Happy cooking ahead.
any chicken recipes walcojme…especially steamed chicken and interesting sauces
This sauce has been one of my favorite non-spicy dipping sauce for proteins. I hope you like it as me too.
In your photos why does your “steamed chicken” have browned crispy looking skin??? you’ve got a special steamer for sure haha
Hi Scott,
I have not found that out previously. I just steamed the chicken along with rice in my rice cooker. May be the color is from the soy sauce.
Hi.. would love to try this one.. is there a substitute for cooking wine?
Hi Joanna,
For this recipe, cooking wine is quite necessary. But if you do not want to bother buying one bottle, try dry sherry.
Thanks a lot,Elaine 🙂 will try this out today..
You are the most welcome! Happy cooking!
My husband is northern chinese and he and his family are FUSSY when it comes to foreigners (me) cooking chinese food. I made this and Bam! Instant respect ? thanks alot, I will make this recipe forever now
I’ve tried your recipe, really simple but very good. I’ve manage to get the juicy chicken. But what I don’t understand is why in your picture the steamed chicken is kinda yellowish on the skin whole mine is really plain white. Did you add something aside from the marinade recipe you wrote? Also I marinade the chicken 30 minutes but it came out not salty enough. Should I add more time to marinade it?
Hi Zelig,
I believe the color is bought by the soy sauce. If you want a dark color, you can use dark soy sauce. Besides, if you want to have a stronger taste, you can poke some small holes before marinating and lengthen the marinating time. It tastes fine for me when served with the dip.
Steamed chicken is so great, one of my favourites, but you will need a very good chicken because all the bad stuff comes out instead of being covered up by frying or such.
Dear Ms Elaine
Need your advice on the steaming. I usually steam using a small metal bowl and put on a wok and cover it up. After 30 minutes I tend to get the metal bowl is filled with steamed water and the chicken is submerged in it. I may lose all the flavor of marination , diluted in the bowl and I have to discard the juice and the fluid away. Is there any method that I could do to prevent it? Similar to steaming fish with ginger and scallion, the steamed water fills my fish bowl. Please advice. Thanks Regards Siva
Hi Siva,
I believe the problem is your wok and the lid. For example I am using rice cooker steamer or metal steamer, the lids for those equipments can drainage the vapour to the edges and keep the dish almost dry. Besides, you still need to wait for several minutes before opening the lid, allowing the vapour dropping down.
wow! looks fabulous! just discovered your website. can’t wait to try your recipes!
Nous l’avons fait hier et c’est délicieux!
Chantall
Merci 🙂
Approximately how ,any people can this recipe serve
It can serve 2 people.
Hi Elaine, can I substitute the cooking wine with vinegar?
No,
If you have no access to cooking wine, skip it.
Hi Elaine!
This has become a recipe our family enjoys very regularly. We love it! Thank you for your recipes which are so delicious … your photos are amazing, which makes them a delight to cook! With the dipping sauce, I add a bit of lime juice …. we find it just adds another level of flavour.
Use lime juice is a smart idea and turn the dish slightly different. I will try it next time. Thanks for letting me know. Happy cooking!
This is looking beautiful and very delicious,
I love steamed chicken very much. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
?
Hi there.
Am a muslim. Instead of chinese wine, what can i use to replace it?
I loves this chinese style steamed chicken and so thanks to you for this recipe.
You can use other wine allowed. Or simply skip it. The chicken tastes great with enough scallion and ginger.
OMG! I tried this recipe today, and just finished eating. It was really really really delicious. The dip sauce compliments the chicken really well.
I am so glad I tried out this recipe.
Thanks.
p/s: instead of chinese cooking wine, I used apple cider vinegar, and boy it tasted damn good too.
Hi,
Thanks for your encouraging comment. This is my favorite way to cook organic young chicken. Happy cooking. Wish you love my other recipes too.
I so glad this recipe doesn’t involve many steps. Very delicious looking photos
Thanks Merry,
You will find it is quite easy and yummy.
I make this dish last night and my mam and sir like it, thank you
Thank for your feedback. Glad to know it turns out great.
I tried this dish today and its so yummy!! My husband & kids love it. Thank you.
Thanks so much ZA for such a lovely feedback. This one is definitely one of the best dishes for kids. Happy cooking!
1!
I missed to eat steam chicken
I have often to eat before
It is quite easy as long as you cook at home. Happy cooking!
This receipt is so in detail. I follow your receipt and it taste really yummy. Thanks you very much Elaine Lou. Appreciate
Thanks Peggy for the wonderful feedback.
This recipe looks delicious! I love easy dinner recipes, especially when they turn out to be something my whole family loves!. This one also looks tasty.
Thank you very much for yoir recipe. I have a metal pot steamer & like Siva Nathan, after steaming, the bowl of chicken filled up with the steam water & the chicken is drowned in the water. How do I solve this problem?
Hi Mary,
You can cover a plastic wrapper or silver paper over the bowl if you cannot change the steamer. Or use another steam with a dome like lid.
This is Mary again. Thank you very much, Elaine, for your reply and your advice. Instead of covering with a plastic cover can I cover with aluminum foil or parchment paper? Or can I simply cover it with a plate? What is silver paper? Will the plastic cover melt while steaming?
Thank you once again for the delicious recipe. My family love it & I’m going to cook it again for my daughter tomorrow. Thanks a zillion😋😘.
silver paper is aluminum foil paper. If your steamer is large enough, cover a plate can work too.
In the pic you show the measurements as teaspoons but in the instructions it \shows tbsp, can you please clarify
Chris,
That’s my fault. Please follow the recipe section.
A simple and delicious recipe! I used a few pieces of drumsticks instead of 1/2 of a whole chicken. The dipping sauce was a winner too. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you, Nicole!
I actually don’t use the dipping sauce and just spread the marinate sauce over my steam rice. Simpler and still very tasteful. I also steam Chinese mushrooms with it. Do you cut a chicken Chinese style first or just use bought chicken parts. If you use a whole chicken, do you cut it first or steam it as a whole chicken and then cut it?
I suggest cut chicken into larger pieces to flat them because steaming is slightly different from poaching. Then cut the large pieces into serving sizes after steaming. But it is ok to cut the chicken firstly before steaming.
Hi, elaine
I have been watching your steamed recipes and I would like to know, can I generally use a bamboo steamer? (Including this recipe)
tried it & loved it!
Thank you!
Do you steam the chicken while the rice is cooking?
Yes. Using the steamer of rice cooker.
Can I steam in a Bamboo Steamer, as well? I think your recipes are the best! Chinese recipes without Any Sugars added. Just as all Chinese say “No Sugars Please”.
Sure, Bamboo steamer is a great tool for this one too.