Soy sauce, rice wine, and sesame oil are the three key components in the recipe for three-cup chicken. This dish is worthy of a fine dining establishment thanks to the generous amounts of fresh ginger, red chilies, and Thai basil. Serve with rice or noodles.
| Prep Time: | 20 mins |
| Cook Time: | 40 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr |
| Servings: | 4 |
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 ½ pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into chunks
- ½ cup sesame oil
- 10 slices fresh ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced
- ½ cup Chinese rice wine
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup water
- 3 tablespoons white sugar
- ½ cup fresh Thai basil leaves
- 3 dried whole red chilies
Instructions
- Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until lightly browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken from the skillet and set aside.
- Heat sesame oil in the same skillet. Add ginger and garlic; cook and stir until ginger begins to brown, about 30 seconds. Stir in reserved chicken, rice wine, soy sauce, water, and sugar; bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until there is only 1/4 cup of liquid left in the skillet, about 20 minutes.
- Stir in basil and chiles; increase heat to medium and continue cooking until liquid is almost gone.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 653 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 28 g |
| Cholesterol | 108 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Protein | 34 g |
| Saturated Fat | 8 g |
| Sodium | 1554 mg |
| Sugars | 10 g |
| Fat | 45 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
LOVE this recipe but it does take some time. I made some very minor changes, like using 4 chiles instead of 3, olive oil instead of vegetable, adding some more thai basil as a garnish, etc. as per usual, it took me longer than the stated time (20 mins) to reduce the sauce. Otherwise, I followed the recipe. Served over white rice. The chicken was SO flavorful—the salty, sweet, and soy flavors all carmelized together. The fresh ginger and anise-flavored basil were also super delicious additions. The chile peppers add some aesthetic and heat but only when you bit into one, and then it can be VERY hot. If you want more consistent heat, maybe add some pepper flakes or chop up the chiles.
GREAT!!!
1/2 cup sesame oil is too much.. 1 tablespoon will be enough.
Followed recipe exactly. I found it far too salty and I added no additional salt.
Wonderful == Will make it again.
Other than I used a sugar alternative (I’m Keto) I have made this several times and we love it
This was delicious but the next time I will use less sesame oil.
I thought this was a great recipe. I also cut down the sesame oil it really doesn’t need half a cup. Everything else I kept the same. I do think that it needs more sauce so I may not cook it down as long next time and maybe add something to thicken it. Maybe the other reviewer suggestion of dredging the chicken in flour first. I’m not sure. But overall a nice dinner. I served it over jasmine rice.
Never had this before so I read the reviews first. Cut the soy sauce down to a 1/4 c since I don,
liked it a lot, will do again
We thought this was very good. I did reduce the sugar. Will definitely make it again
Loved it this is a keeper.
I used chicken breast and stevia instead of sugar to keep the calorie count down as I am on a weight management program. I used a fresh chili pepper because I couldn’t find a small amount of the dried pepper at the store. I really liked this and will make it again!
This is now my husband’s favorite dish. If you can’t find the dried peppers, substitute two halved, seeded jalapeno peppers and remove them before serving; it adds a nice punch without being too spicy. Also I highly recommend replacing the water with chicken stock and serving over rice noodles. Rice noodles are the perfect complement to the savory, flavorful chicken.
This was a huge hit with my teens! I made it with rice and broiled brussel sprouts (tossed in olive oil and soy sauce)! I added sesame seeds to olive oil since I didn’t have sesame oil. This was TERRIFIC!! It’s a new fan favorite!
This was a huge hit with my teens! I made it with rice and broiled brussel sprouts (tossed in olive oil and soy sauce)! I added sesame seeds to olive oil since I didn’t have sesame oil. This was TERRIFIC!! It’s a new fan favorite!
Very ordinary stir fry– Good but not special.
This was really delicious. I had to remove the chicken after 20 minutes simmering. Turn up the heat to reduce the liquid down. And then add the chicken back with the Thai basil and peppers. A definite keeper recipe. Served it with sweet wile rice just for fun.
I used 1/4 lite soy for this…very good! I also added broccoli for a little diversity
My Taiwanese college roomie used to make authentic 3 Cup Chicken and this is darn close.
The taste is pretty good except it was too salty. I used chicken wings instead of thigh meat and chopped it into smaller pieces. It took longer to reduce the sauce to 1/4 cup so I turned up the heat to medium-high.