Lazi Ji (Chongqing Chicken With Chiles)
Lazi ji, a specialty of the sweltering city of Chongqing in southwestern China, might appear at first glance to be all chiles, spilling rim to rim in reckless abundance. But you’re not meant to eat them. They’re fried briefly, just long enough to give off their fragrance and lend a little sting to the cooking oil. Part of the fun of the dish is hunting for the small, crispy nubs of chicken, which in Chongqing are served with the bones left in, for happy grappling. (If you prefer to use boneless chicken thighs, cut them into pieces no bigger than popcorn.) You’ll want your ingredients premeasured at the start, since everything comes together quickly at the end: garlic and ginger turned golden and toasty, Sichuan pepper with its tickling buzz. The culinary scholar Fuchsia Dunlop advises staying away from the most powerful chiles; instead, seek out the long, slender, medium-hot variety sold by the bag at Chinese groceries. Be careful they don’t blacken in the wok. You want that red, untainted, unextinguished, blazing on the plate.
- Preparation:
- Cooking:
- Total:
- Serves: 4 persons
Ingredients
- 1 ½pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, bones removed (see Tip)
- 1(1-inch) piece fresh ginger
- 1scallion, white part only
- 2teaspoons Shaoxing wine
- ½teaspoon fine salt
- 1 ¾cups/1 3/4 ounces medium-hot dried red chiles (see Tip)
- ½teaspoon sesame seeds (optional)
- 2garlic cloves
- 1(1/2-inch) piece fresh ginger
- 2scallions, white parts only (plus optional 2 tablespoons thinly sliced scallion greens for serving)
- About 2 cups cooking oil, for frying
- ½tablespoon Sichuan chile bean paste (see Tip)
- 2teaspoons whole Sichuan peppercorns (see Tip)
- Dash of Shaoxing wine
- ½teaspoon sugar
- ¼teaspoon fine salt
- 1teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
Step 1
Prepare the chicken: Cut the chicken thighs into 3/4-inch chunks. Place the chicken pieces in a bowl.Step 2
Make the marinade. Lightly smack the ginger and scallion white with the flat of a cleaver blade or a rolling pin to crush them slightly, then add to the bowl of chicken, along with the Shaoxing wine and salt. Mix well, then let the chicken marinate for 10 to 15 minutes.Step 3
Meanwhile, snip the chiles into 1/2- to 3/4-inch segments and shake out the seeds as much as possible (see Tip). Toast the sesame seeds, if using, in a small frying pan over very gentle heat until fragrant and tinged with gold. Peel and slice the garlic and ginger. Lightly smack the scallion whites with the flat of a cleaver blade or a rolling pin to crush them slightly.Step 4
Remove and discard the ginger and scallion white from the marinade. Heat 1 2/3 cups cooking oil in a seasoned wok over high heat to 375 degrees. Add the chicken, stirring to separate the pieces, and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 minutes until slightly golden. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon.Step 5
Reheat the oil to 375 degrees, return the chicken to the wok and fry for another 3 to 4 minutes until golden and crisp. Remove from the wok with a slotted spoon and set aside.Step 6
Carefully pour off the oil and wipe or brush out the wok if necessary. Return 3½ tablespoons of the oil to the wok and place over medium heat. Add the chile bean paste and stir until the oil is red, then add the garlic, ginger and scallion whites, and stir-fry briefly until they smell delicious. Add the chile segments and Sichuan peppercorns and stir until slightly scorched and aromatic, about 30 seconds, taking great care not to burn them; they should end up scorched but still gloriously red. (If the chiles are in danger of burning, remove the wok from the stove for a moment.)Step 7
Return the twice-fried chicken to the wok and stir briskly to coat in the fragrant oil. Stir in the Shaoxing wine, sugar and salt. Remove from heat, then stir in the sesame oil. Turn out onto a serving dish and scatter with the sesame seeds and scallion greens, if using.