This is a not-so-common Chinese dish believed to originate from Sichuan and Taiwan. Believed to have warming properties, this dish is sometimes made for women who had just given birth. Nonetheless, I find this method of cooking chicken a sure way to produce a tender, juicy and aromatic meat.

The sesame oil that you’ll need for this dish is the dark variety. Make sure you get the right kind.

The non-meat component comprises black fungus and mushrooms (soaked).

For the chicken, I would like to pre-cook it in a microwave until fat is expressed and the flesh begins to separate from the bone.

Some ginger slices in about a quarter of a cup of sesame oil. Make sure that the heat is low.

It’s OK for the oil to foam but don’t let it fume or that will destroy the fragrance of the sesame oil.

After gently stewing the ginger slices for 5-10 minutes, dump in the pre-cooked chicken, soaked mushrooms and black fungus.

Most people would use rice wine for this dish. I decided to experiment with mei gui lu 玫瑰露 here. Pour in the wine until it almost covers the chicken. Add a couple of tablespoons of oyster sauce. The mei gui lu I use here is salted, so I didn’t have to add too much oyster sauce. If your wine is not salted, you may need more.

And here’s the final product. I don’t recommend it for kids because of the high alcohol content of the mei gui lu, but most adults should be able to accept it. Using mei gui lu has it advantages and disadvantages. Note that this wine’s fragrance may overwhelm the fragrance of the sesame oil, but it’s an interesting variation of run-of-the-mill 麻油鸡.