Cantonese Roast and Soy Sauce Meats Recipe
Soy Sauce Chicken
Soy sauce chicken is a Cantonese poached or braised chicken colored and seasoned with soy sauce, ginger, scallion, and aromatics.
Recipe at a glance
| Purpose | Menu-derived Chinese restaurant recipe family |
| Cuisine or format | Cantonese Roast and Soy Sauce Meats |
| Consolidation rule | Closely related menu names are treated as one recipe family when the sauce, technique, or format is the same. |
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken or 4 leg quarters
- 1 cup light soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 slices ginger
- 3 scallions
- 2 star anise
- 3 cups water
- Sesame oil, optional
Method
- Simmer soy sauces, sugar, ginger, scallions, star anise, and water.
- Lower chicken into the liquid.
- Poach gently, turning for even color.
- Rest in the liquid off heat until cooked through.
- Remove and brush with sesame oil if desired.
- Chop and serve with rice or noodles.
Variations and substitutions
- Adjust the protein or vegetable only when the core technique and sauce remain recognizable.
- For allergies or religious dietary needs, check sauces, broth, wrappers, cooking wine, and shared wok or fryer use.
- For restaurant-style versions, texture matters as much as flavor: noodles should not be mushy, fried items should not be soggy, and broths should remain clear unless the dish calls for thickness.