Grilled Chee Hou Sauce Chicken (燒烤柱候鷄, Siu1 Haau1 Cyu5 Hau6 Gai1)

Chee Hou sauce is usually used as a flavoring ingredient in the Beef Flank and Tendon Stew (燜牛筋牛腩, Man¹ Ngau⁴ Gan¹ Ngau⁴ Naam⁵) recipe. The sauce is very similar to hoisin sauce, which can be substituted, but tastes just slightly spicier. For this dish, it is used as part of the marinade for grilled chicken.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

4 lb.	2 kg.	Chicken thigh or breast pieces (雞肉, gai1 juk6)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
4 cloves	4 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
3 Tbs.	45 ml.	Koon Chun Sauce Factory brand Chee Hou sauce (柱候酱, cyu5 hau6 zoeng3) or equivalent
½ cup	125 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
½ cup	125 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)

 

Equipment

4 qt.	3.8 L.	Covered bowl
		Tongs and an oil coated paper towel
22.5 in.	57 cm.	Covered charcoal or gas grill (or larger)

 

Koon Chun Sauce Factory
Brand Chee Hou Sauce
(柱候酱, cyu5 hau6 zoeng3)

Instructions

1. Prepare the chicken thigh or breast meat by removing any excess fat. Marinate the chicken in a covered container overnight in the refrigerator with the ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, Koon Chun Sauce Factory brand Chee Hou sauce or equivalent, soy sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. Take the chicken out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking. Hoisin sauce can be substituted if Chee Hou sauce is not available.
2. Prepare the charcoal or gas grill for indirect cooking following the manufacturer’s instructions. Light the charcoal or preheat the gas grill accordingly. Soak the wood for smoking (pecan goes well with this dish) for one hour if desired. I use dry and not soaked wood.
3. If using a charcoal grill, arrange the lighted coals on one half of the grill. The side of the grill with the coals (the “hot” side) will be used to grill the chicken and the side without the coals (the “cool” side) will be used for cooking the chicken. For a gas grill, follow the manufacturer’s instructions as to which burners to leave on for indirect cooking. Clean the grill grate and then, using tongs and a paper towel coated with oil, lubricate the grate to prevent the chicken from sticking. Put the smoking wood onto the coals or as per the instructions for the gas grill.
4. Place the chicken on the cool side of the grill and cook for 10 minutes covered. Uncover and move the chicken (skin side down) to the hot side of the grill for 2-3 minutes to produce the grill marks. Turn the chicken over (skin side up) to brown the other side for 2-3 minutes. Remove the chicken from the grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving. The temperature of your fire and previous experience with your grill will determine the total cooking time for the chicken.