Strange flavour or Guaiwei (怪味) is a speciality of Sichuan food. Named for the combination of many different flavour profiles into one cohesive sauce, it includes hot chilli oil, numbing Sichuan peppercorns, sweet sugar, sour vinegar, salt, savoury soy sauce, and nutty sesame paste and oil. Strange flavour sauce is sometimes used in hot dishes but more typically in cold dishes like this one from Fuchsia Dunlop’s The Food of Sichuan. In Sichuan, where poached chicken dishes are popular, the chicken is poached with spring onion (scallion) and ginger to give it a purity of flavour and the skin is included for its a silky, succulent texture. This is also an excellent way to enjoy left-over chicken or turkey.
You will need approximately half a chicken for this recipe and this step is best done ahead. Place the chicken in cold water with some spring onions and slices of fresh ginger. The all-important rule for poaching chicken is to not allow the water to boil. Bring the heat up to barely a simmer very slowly. If you can’t keep the heat low enough, turn it off for 10-15 minutes and repeat the process until the chicken is just cooked through. Leave it in the poaching liquid to cool. For the sauce, combine 2 tablespoons of Chinese roasted sesame paste, 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, ½ a teaspoon of salt, 1½ teaspoons of caster sugar, 1½ teaspoons of of Chinkiang vinegar, ¼-½ a teaspoon of roasted ground Sichuan peppercorns, 2 teaspoons of sesame oil and 4 tablespoons of chilli oil (including some of the chilli flakes). I highly recommend making your own chilli oil as commercial ones tend to be salty. If you do use a bought oil, leave out the salt and taste your sauce before adding any. When you’re ready to assemble take the chicken out of its poaching liquid and tear or slice the meat into bite-sized pieces. Finely shred the white parts of 4 spring onions, roughly chop 30g (1 oz) of roasted or deep-fried peanuts and toast 2 teaspoons of sesame seeds. You can arrange this dish to mix at the table or combine the chicken, spring onions and sauce and then garnish with peanuts and sesame seeds.
michelle picker cooks 