Silkie hen (乌鸡, wū jī) is a Chinese language breed with black pores and skin and bones beneath fluffy white feathers, and it comes from Jiangxi province the place house cooks have been simmering it into nourishing soups for 1000’s of years. The broth turns a clear darkish amber from the darkish meat, with a savory taste than what you get from a daily yellow hen. Throughout China, this soup belongs to a class referred to as 煲汤 (bāo tāng), the sluggish simmered tonic soups that nourish greater than they fill.
This is without doubt one of the first soups my mother taught me to make as a younger grownup in Beijing, and it has stayed in my kitchen ever since. I make it the way in which she did, with a small chicken, a Dutch oven, and a protracted simmer that fills the house with the scent of ginger and shiitake. My husband is aware of when I’ve this on the range that somebody in the home is both getting sick or recovering, and he reaches for a small bowl of the broth earlier than dinner at any time when I make it.
My silkie hen soup recipe is genuinely easy after you have the hen. I drop every part into the pot without delay, deliver it to a boil, skim the brown foam off the highest for the primary 10 minutes, then drop the warmth low and let the soup simmer coated for two hours till a leg pulls cleanly off the physique. I can’t wait so that you can do that the subsequent time the climate turns or somebody in the home wants consolation, the step-by-step recipe beneath will see you thru.
Components
The entire soup stands on 6 substances and water, so every one has an actual job on the backside of the pot. Right here is how I take into consideration the layers as I store.
Silkie hen: A small entire silkie hen is the precise measurement for a Dutch oven and serves 4. I purchase mine contemporary from a Chinese language grocery retailer, however Asian markets and on-line butchers additionally inventory them.
Ginger: A thumb-sized piece of contemporary ginger, sliced into rounds, lifts the savory broth and retains any gaminess in examine. I go away the pores and skin on if my ginger is contemporary, for the reason that lengthy simmer pulls a lot out of the slices.
Dried jujubes and goji berries: Each are optionally available within the unique recipe, however I maintain them in as a result of they spherical out the broth with a mushy sweetness that balances the savory hen. The jujubes are dried purple dates that I rinse shortly earlier than they go in, and the goji berries swell and switch a vivid orange-red within the completed bowl. For extra on the dried jujube as a Chinese language pantry staple, my jujube tea publish covers it in additional element.
Shiitake mushrooms: Contemporary or dried shiitake mushrooms construct the umami spine of the soup. I normally go along with dried as a result of they pull a richer, smokier observe from the broth, however contemporary shiitakes work when that’s what is within the fridge. Rinse dried ones shortly underneath chilly water earlier than they go in.
Corn on the cob: One small ear of corn, husked and lower into a number of rounds, drops into the pot entire. It provides the broth a quiet sweetness within the background that I don’t get from the jujubes alone, and the kernels additionally flip right into a mushy aspect serving as soon as the soup is finished.
Water: Plain chilly water is the whole liquid, no broth, no inventory.
Find out how to Make
1. Drop every part in chilly: Place the silkie hen in a small Dutch oven or heavy pot simply massive sufficient to carry it, then add the jujubes, shiitake mushrooms, goji berries, corn, and ginger across the chicken. Pour 6 cups of chilly water excessive. It’s effective if a few of the hen sits above the water line, the simmer takes care of it.
2. Carry to a boil: Set the pot over medium-high warmth with the lid off and convey the water as much as a full boil. Because it heats, brown foam will rise to the floor, which is the protein from the hen coagulating, not something flawed with the chicken.
3. Skim the froth: Drop the warmth to medium-low so the soup is at a sluggish simmer, then skim the floor with a effective sieve to take away all of the brown bits. Preserve skimming for about 10 minutes, till the broth turns from cloudy to clear.
4. Cowl and simmer low: Put the lid on and drop the warmth to low, so the broth is on a low simmer. Simmer for no less than 1 hour and half-hour, and as much as 2 hours and half-hour for essentially the most tender hen. I normally go the total 2 hours.
5. Test the hen: The hen is finished when a leg pulls cleanly off the physique with little or no resistance. If the leg continues to be firmly hooked up, give the soup one other 20 to half-hour and examine once more. This is similar take a look at my mother makes use of, and it’s how I do know the meat will fall off the bone on the plate.
6. Serve two methods or one: Ladle the broth straight from the pot into small bowls for sipping, then raise the hen onto a serving plate and break it into items with chopsticks or tongs. I serve the broth and the hen aspect by aspect with a small bowl of dipping sauce for the meat, however it’s also possible to serve every part collectively in deep bowls when you favor a one-bowl meal.
My Cooking Suggestions
Skim laborious within the first 10 minutes: The brown foam that rises in the course of the first boil is what makes the broth look muddy when you let it keep. I sit on the range for these 10 minutes with a effective mesh sieve and pull off each bit of froth because it comes up. After that the soup is hands-off for the subsequent two hours.
Use a Dutch oven you probably have one: A heavy forged iron Dutch oven holds the low simmer steadier than a daily pot and offers me a deeper-tasting broth. An everyday soup pot works too, simply maintain the warmth a contact decrease so the simmer doesn’t flip right into a boil underneath the lid.
Pull the hen leg to check doneness: Don’t chase a time, chase the feel. Carry a leg with chopsticks or tongs and provides it a lightweight pull, and if it comes away cleanly the hen is finished. If there may be nonetheless resistance, give it extra time.
Skip the salt on the range: Silkie hen soup is a clear tonic broth and salt belongs on the desk, not within the pot. I let every individual season their very own bowl with a small pinch of salt on the desk, which retains the broth versatile for adults and lets me serve a plain bowl for my younger son.
Save a jar of the broth for later: The broth retains and freezes very properly, and a jar of do-it-yourself silkie hen broth within the freezer is one of the best factor to tug out when somebody in the home will get a chilly. I freeze it in 2-cup jars so I at all times have one simple portion able to thaw.
Find out how to Serve
This dish is nice on chilly days, when somebody is recovering from an sickness, and after the primary week of postpartum take care of family and friends. I serve the broth in small bowls first, with a steaming bowl of plain rice and a fast stir fried spinach on the aspect. The hen comes out on a separate plate damaged into items, with a small bowl of northern-style dipping sauce I make from soy sauce, black vinegar, sliced ginger, and a spoonful of sesame oil for dipping the meat.
For a household dinner that wants extra on the desk, I serve silkie hen soup because the broth course at the beginning of the meal, then transfer into a number of heat dishes round steamed rice. If you wish to be taught extra about Chinese language soups, take a look at this easy and fast Chinese language egg drop soup, and this hearty Chinese language winter melon soup with meatballs.
Regularly Ask Questions
Can I make this in an Prompt Pot or stress cooker?
Sure, and I’ve carried out it on busy weeks. I scale back the water to 4 cups, and stress cook dinner on excessive for 45 minutes with a pure launch, which provides me virtually the identical tender meat and clear broth because the stovetop technique. The one factor I lose is the sluggish construct of taste from the lengthy open simmer, which I normally settle for on a Tuesday.
What dipping sauce do you serve with the hen?
My on a regular basis dipping sauce is a northern-style mixture of soy sauce, Chinese language black vinegar, and a small drizzle of sesame oil whisked collectively in a small bowl. It’s the similar sauce I take advantage of for dumplings and it really works simply as properly with the silkie meat. A drop of chili oil is an effective optionally available addition for anybody who desires warmth on the desk.
How lengthy does silkie hen soup maintain within the fridge?
I maintain the soup with the hen nonetheless in it in a sealed container and use it up inside 4 days within the fridge. The broth freezes very properly by itself, and I freeze it in 2-cup jars for as much as 3 months so I at all times have a small batch prepared when somebody will get sick.
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This Silkie Hen Soup is a wholesome and nutrient-rich soup with a contact of sweetness superb for cooler climate or when you find yourself underneath the climate. A complete black-skinned silkie hen simmers for two hours in my Dutch oven with ginger, dried jujubes, shiitake mushrooms, goji berries, and a small ear of corn till the broth is savory, and flippantly candy.
Forestall your display screen from going darkish
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Mix every part in a small dutch oven that’s simply massive sufficient to carry the hen. Add water to cowl the hen. It’s OK if a few of the hen is above the water.
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Prepare dinner over medium-high warmth till bringing to a boil. Flip to medium low warmth. Skim the floor with a effective sieve to take away the brown bits, for 10 minutes or so, till the hen broth is evident. Simmer coated for no less than 1.5 hours, as much as 2 to 2.5 hours, till the hen turns very tender and virtually falls off the bones.
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All of the substances within the soup are edible. However for a transparent broth, you possibly can take away the hen and drain the soup earlier than serving.
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The hen meat shall be fairly tasty as properly. I favor to serve it with some do-it-yourself dipping sauce.
Ingredient Substitution Information
Serving: 1cup, Energy: 128kcal, Carbohydrates: 6.92g, Protein: 17.81g, Fats: 2.72g, Saturated Fats: 0.696g, Ldl cholesterol: 60mg, Sodium: 798mg, Potassium: 284mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1.42g, Vitamin A: 3250IU, Vitamin C: 1.7mg, Calcium: 20mg, Iron: 1.1mg
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