Chicken in black bean sauce is a tasty dish that many people like to order from Chinese take-out restaurants along with others such as Kung pao chicken and Lemon chicken.
If you enjoy this dish regularly, why not try cooking your own version at home? We have taste-tested many of the best recipes on the Internet and found you our favourite one. Let's find out how to cook a fakeaway and get your dinner guests talking about your food!
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What is chicken in black bean sauce?
Chicken in black bean sauce is a Chinese stir-fry chicken dish with fermented black beans.
Fermented black bean is soy black bean that has been fermented and salted. Therefore, it has a salty and bitter-sweet taste. Chinese cooks commonly use them as a seasoning, either as a paste or sauce. For this dish, you will be using it in a sauce form.
What is black bean sauce?
Black bean sauce is black soya beans fermented and preserved in salt. This has an intense, salty taste that you either love or avoid. Deeply savoury, when cooked with meat, it is a flavour enhancer.
This interesting ingredient is something that Chinese cooks use more for seasoning while cooking rather than as a condiment for dipping.
Taste
Chicken in black bean sauce tastes rich and savoury. The sauce itself is robust, and its saltiness can either entice or turn people off. However, once you take a bite, you can taste the sharp and spicy under notes as you chew into the moist meat that has soaked up all the flavour.
It's a little sweet and a little spicy and very tasty. Most people like to mix the sauce into rice to have more flavour.
Chicken with black bean sauce calories
Each serving of chicken in black bean sauce is about 150 to 200 calories. If you use less protein in the gravy, your dish will have fewer calories.
Is chicken in black bean sauce healthy?
Chicken in black bean sauce is healthy if you do not add too much seasoning. In addition, the black beans have no cholesterol and little saturated fats, making them healthy for the heart.
Poultry itself is rich in protein and contains amino acids that improve our mood. Additionally, eating poultry can reduce the risk of heart disease.
Ingredients
To cook this Chinese dish, you need black bean sauce, which you can buy ready-made at most Asian supermarkets. You also need your protein and seasoning like light soy sauce, oyster sauce, and Shaoxing or Chinese wine.
When buying your protein, you can choose whether you like something more fatty or a leaner cut. Chicken thighs are higher in fat and taste tender and moist when cooked. If you cook black bean sauce chicken thighs, it'll taste juicier than using the breast.
Chicken breast has a stringier, firmer texture when cooked. So it depends on your preferences for your chicken in black bean sauce. They have the same amount of nutrition and only differ in fat content.
You can also use diced chicken. You can conveniently buy them pre-diced and packaged in a bag from most supermarkets.
The diced chicken absorbs seasoning better and, when cooked, can taste springier than a whole chicken. They also cook faster because of the smaller surface area.
For those who want to attempt to make their own Chinese black bean sauce recipe, you can mix chicken stock with black beans and ferment it yourself. Otherwise, already fermented black beans can also work.
All the ingredients you need are easily found in supermarkets or on Amazon.
Additions
While the chicken in black bean sauce is already a heart-healthy dish, you might want to make it more well-rounded by adding vegetables. For example, you can add green beans, peppers, mushrooms, and broccoli to the stir fry.
If you prefer something spicier, add chilli peppers. The vegetables will add a raw freshness that balances out the intense saltiness of the gravy.
Furthermore, you can also use Chinese five-spice as an additional spice. This Asian spice is well-loved by Chinese cooks to intensify the umami flavour in food. It is the secret ingredient for many Chinese stir-fries, making the food taste better.
Chinese Five-Spice
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Stir Fry Cooking Tips
Stir-frying your chicken in black bean sauce is an important step. Therefore, it is best to stir-fry expertly to blend the ingredients perfectly, so we have some tips to start you off.
First, if you are using diced meat, remember that meat cut into small pieces will cook rapidly in a pan. Therefore, if you choose to use diced chicken, add that after you have cooked your vegetables and seasoning. The order you put your ingredients in is those that take the longest to cook go into the pan first.
Next, you should marinate your meat for at least 20 minutes. Once ready, pat it dry before you fry it in cooking oil. You need to choose an oil that can withstand high heat without smoking to avoid adding a charred taste to the food. Make sure to keep the meat as dry as possible to reduce splattering when adding it to the hot oil.
Before you stir-fry, add your oil and let it smoke. The smoke tells you that the wok is ready for you to start throwing your ingredients in without burning your food.
As you stir-fry this Chinese meal, you must be in constant motion. Lift, stir, and toss. Push the ingredients to the side when you want to add new elements to the middle.
Lastly, watch your heat and be careful not to overcook your food! You can cook for a short amount of time over high heat. Once you've lowered your heat, add your liquid for more gravy and let it simmer as the mix slowly cools down.
Chicken in black bean sauce noodles
One of the best ways to have this takeaway dish is with yellow noodles. Yellow noodles, or Chinese egg noodles, are made from wheat flour, water, and egg. The strands can be thick or thin and have a chewy texture. A perfect pairing with the rich gravy, chicken in black bean sauce with noodles makes a good supper!
First, follow the instructions on the packet to cook your noodles. Drain your noodles once they are done cooking. Next, heat your oil in a wok, start stir-frying your chicken, and set aside. Then, add in your seasoning, vegetables, and finally, your noodles. Add more of the gravy to your liking and toss it before serving it.
Chicken in Black Bean Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
Chicken in black bean sauce marinade
- 3 tbsps water
- 3 tsps cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 2 tsps light soy sauce
- 600 g chicken breasts
Cooking chicken in black bean sauce
- 3 tbsps olive oil
- 3 slices ginger
- 3 chopped cloves garlic
- 3 chopped scallions
- 3 tbsps fermented black beans
- 1 cut green bell pepper
- 1 cut red bell pepper
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- ¼ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 2 tbsps water
Instructions
- Combine the chicken breasts (cut into thick slices) and marinade ingredients. Mix until all the liquid is absorbed. Allow marinating for 30 minutes.
- Pre-heat your wok over high heat. When it smokes, spread oil over the bottom of the wok. Add the meat, and spread the pieces into a single layer. After the meat has cooked for about 30 seconds, flip, and cook the other side.
- Watch that the meat has turned opaque on the outer layer. Then, switch off the heat and transfer it to a dish.
- Heat the oil in the wok over medium heat before adding ginger, garlic, and black beans. Stir-fry for a while before turning the heat up high.
- Add the green and red peppers, and toss your ingredients around. Finally, add sugar, sugar, Shaoxing wine and salt. Stir-fry before adding the meat. Coat all the ingredients in the gravy evenly, and then let it simmer. Once the ingredients have cooled down, you can serve your finished dish.
Notes
- You can use sesame oil to replace olive oil or any oil with a high smoking point. Before serving, add some water if you think the gravy is too thick.
- You can use a cooking thermometer to know whether your meat is thoroughly cooked. For example, the recommended cooking temperature for poultry is 75 degrees celsius. You can also observe if the diced chicken has shrunk. That is a good indication of when the meat is fully cooked.
Nutrition
Calories have been calculated using an online calculator. Nutritional information offered on Honest Food Talks is for general information purposes and are only rough estimations.
Miss Ling's Kitchen on Youtube made a video recipe for her version of this classic Chinese dish. We also recommend checking out her style of preparing this wholesome dish!
Now that you've already got your chicken in black bean sauce, you can tuck right in or serve it to your guests. But, of course, they will never know that you made it all by yourself using our recipe!
Share your successful fakeaway on social media, and tag our Instagram page @honestfoodtalks, so your friends know where to find the next best recipe to try!
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