Parchment Wrapped Chicken
Submitted by aussie5
Parchment wrapped chicken: tender chicken strips marinated in ginger-soy, tossed with bean sprouts, scallions, and walnuts, folded into parchment parcels and steamed. A classic Chinese restaurant appetizer made at home.
YIELD
8 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
25 minREADY
1 hrsParchment Wrapped Chicken (Paper Wrapped Chicken)
This parchment wrapped chicken is the Chinese restaurant classic known as paper wrapped chicken or zhi bao ji. Traditionally fried in deep cellophane-like packets, this lighter home version steams the same ginger-soy marinated chicken with crunchy bean sprouts, scallions, and toasted walnuts inside parchment parcels. Each bundle opens at the table to release a fragrant puff of steam and aromatics.
The ginger juice is a technique worth knowing. Grate fresh ginger, then squeeze the pulp through a fine sieve or cheesecloth. What drips out is pure ginger essence, pungent and clear, without any fiber texture in the finished dish. A teaspoon goes a long way.
Thinly slicing the chicken against the grain is essential. Wide cuts don’t cook through in the short steam time, and thick cuts turn rubbery under the parchment’s steamy environment. Aim for strips no more than quarter-inch thick.
Folding the parchment correctly is the part that looks intimidating but becomes easy after one or two bundles. The point-over-filling method locks in steam and creates a beautiful presentation, so don’t cheat with foil or plastic. The parchment is part of the appeal.
Pro Tips
- Use parchment paper, not wax paper; wax paper melts under steam heat and ruins the dish.
- Blanch the bean sprouts just briefly (about one minute); over-blanching turns them limp and watery.
- Toast the walnuts before adding for deeper flavor; untoasted nuts taste bland against the savory marinade.
- Serve immediately after steaming so the parchment stays puffed and dramatic; deflated parcels lose the showmanship.
Variations
- Swap walnuts for cashews or water chestnuts for different textural contrast.
- Add slivered shiitake mushrooms or julienned carrots for extra vegetables in the filling.
- Use shrimp or tofu in place of chicken for seafood or vegetarian versions.
Ingredients
Directions
Cut eight 8 inch squares of parchment paper.
Cut chicken into thin, narrow strips, about 3 inches long.
Combine soy sauce, ginger juice and sugar in large bowl; stir in chicken, let stand 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour boiling water over bean sprouts; let stand one minute.
Drain; cool under cold water and drain well.
Thoroughly toss chicken mixture with bean sprouts, green onions and walnuts.
Place about ½ cupful of chicken mixture in center of each parchment square.
Fold bottom point of parchment over filling; crease just below filling and fold point over and under filling.
Fold side points over filling, overlapping slightly.
Crease paper to hold folds. Fold remaining corner down so point extends below bottom of bundle; tuck this point between folded sides.
Crease paper to hold folds. Repeat with remaining parchment squares.
Place bundles seam side down, in single layer on steamer rack.
Set rack in large pot or wok of boiling water.
Comments
