Glazed Five Spice Chicken Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat-A True Culinary Education-Culinary Journey
This is not your traditional cookbook. This is a culinary education, a culinary journey. Samin Nosrat divides her book into four sections, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, and explains each element in depth, and then provides recipes and suggested menus. If that isn’t enough, the art by Wendy MacNaughton, a New York Times bestselling illustrator and graphic journalist is truly a gift. If you don't own this book, go get it!
Samin takes the daunting subject of cooking and makes it approachable for everyone regardless of your skill level. One of our favorite tips from the book is to give everyone a way to contribute to the meal. Whether it is something as simple as setting the table or bringing an appetizer. Giving someone a job helps them feel like part of the celebration!
Glazed Five-Spice Chicken
We have made this recipe countless times, Most memorable, a quarantine family dinner at the lake where we grilled the chicken and a party and a dinner for three visiting Japanese nursing students. One of the Japanese nursing students loved this dish so much she went back to Japan and recreated her own version of the dish and sent us a picture!
We made only minor modifications to this recipe to make it gluten free! We decided on coco aminos vs. tamari because many people are sensitive to soy. However, we have made it both ways. We have also used bone in as well as boneless chicken thighs. You just need to adjust the cooking time. Enjoy this delicious and easy recipe. pg 338-339 Salt ,Fat, Acid, Heat
4 lb chicken or 8 bone-in, skin on chicken thighs
salt
1/4 c coco aminos or Tamari*
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c mirin (rice wine)
1 Tbs toasted sesame oil
1 Tbs finely grated ginger
4 garlic cloves, finely grated or pounded with a pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon Chicese five-spice powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
4 scallions, green and white parts slivered
*modified from printed recipe
Directions adapted from the Salt,Fat,Acid Heat Cookbook
Prep the chicken the day before you want to cook. If using a whole chicken, cut the bird into 8 pieces. Season the chicken lightly with salt and let it sit for 30 minutes. In the meantime, whisk together the coco aminos or tamari, brown sugar, miring, sesame oil, ginger, garlic and five spice, and cayenne. Place the chicken in a resealable plastic bag and pour in the marinade. Seal the bag and squish the marinade around so all the chicken is evenly coated. Refrigerate overnight.
A few hours before you want to cook the chicken, pull it out of the fridge to come up to room temperature. Preheat the over to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. We have cooked the chicken on a grill as well and it has turned out fantastic.
To cook place the chicken skin side up on a shallow 8x13” roasting dish, and pour the marinade over the meat. The maridnade should generously cover the bottom of the pan. If it doesn't, add 2 Tablespoons of water to ensure even coverage and prevent burning. Slide into the oven and rotate the pan every 10 to 12 minutes.
Remove the breast, if using, after 20 minutes of cooking, to prevent overcooking. Continue cooking dark meat for another 20-25 minutes, until it is tender at the bone, or a total of 45 minutes.
When the dark meat is cooked return the Brest to the pan and crank oven to 450 degrees to let the sauce reduce and the skin to get dark brown and crisp, about 12 minutes. Brush the chicken with the marinade from the pan every 3-4 minutes to glaze them.
Serve warm, garnish with cilantro and slivered scallions. Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days.
We typically serve it with steamed Jasmine Rice and Vietnamese Cucumber salad also found in Samin’s book.
Nosrat, S., MacNaughton, W., & Pollan, M. (2017). Salt, fat, acid, heat: Mastering the elements of good cooking (pp. 338-339). NY, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Nosrat, S., MacNaughton, W., & Pollan, M. (2017). Glazed Five-Spice Chicken. In Salt, fat, acid, heat: Mastering the elements of good cooking (pp. 338-339). NY, NY: Simon & Schuster.