Steamed Chicken with Dried Shrimp and Salted Radish (菜脯蝦米蒸鷄肉, Coi3 Pou2 Haa1 Mai5 Zing1 Gai1 Juk6)

Ground chicken makes a good alternative to pork when making steamed dishes. My previous steamed ground meat recipes used pork: Steamed Pork with Salted Duck Egg (鹹鴨蛋蒸豬肉, Haam⁴ Aap³ Daan⁶ Zing¹ Zyu¹ Juk⁶) and Steamed Pork with Salted Fish (Haam⁴ Jyu⁴ Zing¹ Zyu¹ Juk⁶, 鹹魚蒸豬肉). Dried shrimp is common addition to steamed pork dishes, while salted radish is not. In general, any salted ingredient can be used in steamed meat dishes. While I marinate my ground meat overnight, this step can be omitted if you’re pressed for time.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Ground chicken meat (雞肉, gai1 juk6)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1½ Tbs.	25 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 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 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
2 oz.	60 g.	Dried shrimp (蝦米, haa1 mai5)
2 oz.	60 g.	Salted radish (菜脯, coi3 pou2)
2-3	2-3	Dried whole Shiitake mushrooms (冬菇, dung1 gu1), rehydrated
1 stalk	1 stalk	Green onions (葱, cung1), cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces on the diagonal
		Water for cooking

Equipment

		Garlic press
12 in.	30 cm.	Steamer (or larger)
9 in.	23 cm.	Plate or bowl for steaming
		Plate lifter

Instructions

1. Thoroughly mix and marinate the ground chicken for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the dried shrimp, salted radish, ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. I have found that 1 Tbs. (15 ml.) corn starch per ½ lb. (250 g.) ground chicken results in the best texture in the cooked dish. If marinating the ground chicken overnight, take the chicken out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
2. Pour boiling water over the dried whole Shiitake mushrooms in a heat proof bowl and rehydrate the mushrooms for at least one hour. Remove the Shiitake mushrooms from the rehydration liquid and remove the stems. If you need to rehydrate the Shiitake mushrooms quickly, use the method described here: Technique: How to Quickly Rehydrate Dried Shiitake Mushrooms (冬菇, Dung¹ Gu¹).
3. Wash and cut the green onion into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces.
4. Form the ground chicken into an even layer in the steaming dish. Arrange the Shiitake mushrooms on top of the ground chicken in the steaming dish.
5. Fill the steamer with water and bring to a vigorous boil over high heat. Put the plate with the chicken into the steamer and cook over high heat for 5 minutes before reducing the heat to simmer for another 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove the plate from the steamer with a plate lifter, sprinkle the green onion pieces over the steamed chicken, and serve with steamed rice.