Quang Ninh is a land of sea, forests, hills, mountains, and fertile plains. As a result, it boasts a rich culinary tradition with many delicious dishes. Tien Yen chicken hotpot cooked with rice wine lees is one such delicacy!
Visit Quang Ninh to Enjoy Delicious and Nutritious Tien Yen Chicken Hotpot Cooked with Rice Wine Lees
When Quang Ninh cuisine is mentioned, besides fresh seafood, Tien Yen chicken is also a specialty reflected in the saying “Mong Cai pigs – Dam Ha girls – Tien Yen chickens.”
Tien Yen is about 70 km from Ha Long City. The district is mainly hilly and mountainous, making it suitable for raising poultry and livestock in natural conditions. As a result, Tien Yen chicken is famous far and wide, a specialty with the distinctive flavor of this region.
Tien Yen chicken, a native free-range breed. Photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper.
Tien Yen chicken belongs to the local hill-chicken and bearded-chicken breeds; hens have a characteristic tuft of long feathers beneath their beaks. The rustic, healthy, nature-friendly raising method is the secret behind the chicken’s firm meat.
Characteristics of the Tien Yen chicken breed. Photo: Ethnic and Minority Affairs Newspaper.
Tien Yen residents raise their chickens free-range, allowing them to roam freely around the area and forage for ants, termites, crickets, and more. As a result, the meat is fragrant and sweet, with little fat, while the skin is thick, golden, and crisp.
Tien Yen chicken can be prepared in many different ways: boiled, salt-steamed, grilled, cooked in ginger rice wine soup, prepared with Chinese medicinal herbs, and more. And, of course, there is also the hotpot of Tien Yen chicken cooked with rice wine lees, familiar yet remarkably distinctive in taste.
Boiled Tien Yen chicken with crisp golden skin and sweet meat. Illustrative photo: Culture Newspaper.
The ingredients used to prepare this dish are all familiar: fermented rice, ginger, shallots, shiitake mushrooms, chilies, and more. The seasonings include satay, pork marrow bones for the broth, seasoning powder, and sugar. There are also various vegetables served with the hotpot, such as scallions, cordyceps mushrooms, water spinach, napa cabbage, Vietnamese coriander, and more.
The delicious flavor of this hotpot comes from the bowl of fermented rice made from yellow-flower sticky rice, a variety similar to the fermented glutinous rice commonly enjoyed during the Double Fifth Festival on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
Appetizing boiled chicken. Illustrative photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper.
The Tien Yen chicken is cleaned and cut into bite-sized pieces. The shallots and ginger are finely sliced. The shiitake mushrooms are halved. The chicken is then marinated for about 30 minutes with half a bowl of fermented rice, shallots, ginger, seasoning powder, and sugar.
Roasted Tien Yen chicken. Illustrative photo: Culture Newspaper.
While waiting for the chicken to absorb the seasonings, the hotpot broth is prepared. The broth is simmered from pork marrow bones, with a small bowl of rice wine lees, the remaining half bowl of fermented rice, and seasoning powder added.
When the hotpot broth is bubbling vigorously, the marinated chicken, shiitake mushrooms, and cordyceps mushrooms are added. After a few minutes, the dish is ready to enjoy. Once finished, the chicken hotpot has a beautiful golden color from the cordyceps mushrooms.
Ingredients for cooking the hotpot. Photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper.
With the dish of Tien Yen chicken hotpot cooked with rice wine lees, it is especially delicious when served with a dipping sauce made from soy sauce, sesame oil, and several other seasonings, adding to the dish’s appeal.
The hotpot broth is thick and fragrant with the aroma of glutinous rice wine, with a rich sweetness and a spicy, tingling sensation on the tip of the tongue. The chicken is firm and the skin crisp; dipping it in the sauce makes it even more delicious. Besides being tasty, this hotpot is also highly nutritious, making it suitable for postpartum women or people suffering from colds, sneezing, and runny noses. A bowl of the hotpot broth can make you feel lighter and restore the body’s energy.
The hotpot’s beautiful golden color. Photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper.
Tien Yen chicken hotpot with sour bamboo shoots. Illustrative photo: nhahangquatram.
Tien Yen chicken hotpot cooked with rice wine lees is made with the famous delicious chicken of this mountainous district in Quang Ninh Province, offering an enticing flavor that attracts discerning diners from everywhere. Follow iVIVU blog for more useful new articles and enjoy a wonderful holiday!
