Giong Gê Thong: Ginger Chicken Soup 姜鸡汤
The pot for when the day is too much.
Chicken on the bone and fresh ginger make a clear, comforting broth, with vegetables that turn it into a meal.
The dishes that taste most like home still start in the Chinese kitchen: ginger, rice, a hot wok, a pot of bones. This is the soup the Chinese chapter of my cookbook opens with.
Serves: 4
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 1 hr
Total: 1 hr 20 min
Level: Easy
Contains: soya and wheat (soy sauce) if using soy sauce. Sesame if using sesame oil. Check the stock label for celery. Vegetarian option: soya (tofu).
Ingredients
1 tbsp (15 ml) sunflower or canola oil
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 thumb (about 4 cm) fresh ginger, sliced into coins
1.2 kg bone-in chicken pieces, such as thighs, drumsticks or a jointed small chicken
2 litres chicken or vegetable stock, or water with stock cubes prepared according to the packet directions
2 carrots, cut into thick coins
1 large potato, cut into cubes
1 fresh corn cob, cut into short rounds, optional
4 fresh or dried shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2 spring onions, cut into 4 cm lengths
1 tbsp (15 ml) light soy sauce, optional
Salt and white pepper, to taste
To finish
Extra spring onion greens, thinly sliced, optional
A few drops of sesame oil, optional
Method
If using dried shiitake, soak them in warm water for 20 minutes. Slice the softened mushrooms and strain their soaking liquid through a fine sieve to remove any grit. Fresh shiitake can be sliced and used straight away.
Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot over a medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger and stir for about 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Add the chicken and cook for about 5 minutes, turning the pieces to give them a little colour.
Pour in the stock or prepared water, along with the strained mushroom soaking liquid if you have it. Bring to the boil, then skim off any foam that rises to the surface.
Lower the heat and simmer the chicken for 30–40 minutes. Add the carrots, potato and corn, if using, and simmer for a further 15–20 minutes. Add the mushrooms for the final 5 minutes. The chicken should be cooked through and the potato tender. If using a thermometer, check that the thickest part of the chicken reaches 75°C, keeping the probe away from the bone.
Stir in the spring onions for the last 2 minutes of cooking. Add the soy sauce, if using, then taste before seasoning with salt and white pepper.
Ladle into deep bowls. Remove the ginger coins if you prefer, and finish with sliced spring onion greens or a few drops of sesame oil. Serve with rice if you want a more substantial meal.
What done looks like
The broth tastes distinctly of chicken and ginger. The chicken is cooked through and tender, the potato is soft, and the carrots still hold their shape.
Storage & freezing
Divide leftovers into shallow containers so they cool quickly and refrigerate within 2 hours. Keep in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze in portions for up to 2 months. Thaw frozen soup in the fridge. Reheat a portion only once, until the broth is bubbling and the chicken is piping hot throughout.
Tomorrow
Shred leftover chicken into congee or fried rice. Freeze spare broth in small portions for another meal.
Vegetarian option
Use vegetable stock and replace the chicken with 400 g firm tofu or extra mushrooms. Simmer the carrots, potato and mushrooms in the ginger broth until tender, about 20–25 minutes. If using tofu, add it for the final 5 minutes to heat through.
On the plate
Serve in a deep bowl with spring onion greens on top and rice alongside.
Tips
A few well-washed onion trimmings or celery leaves can simmer with the chicken for extra flavour; remove them before serving. White pepper keeps the broth pale, but black pepper is fine if that is what you have.
Kitchen note
The bones give the broth its depth, while the ginger brings warmth. Keep the seasoning gentle so both can come through.
This recipe is from my cookbook, Chopsticks, Pots & Wooden Spoons, with 131 more like it. A signed-copy voucher costs R550: buy one for yourself or put it under the tree, and the signed book follows by courier. Get a signed-copy voucher.
Cook well. Waste less.
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