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–+ servings

Slow Cooker Red-Cooked Chicken

Manila Spoon
With a deep reddish hue, meat-off-the bone-tender chicken and deliciously spiced sauce, this Asian dish is an easy favorite.
4.60 from 10 votes
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 5 hours
Course Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine Asian Cuisine, Chinese
Servings 8
Calories 377 kcal

Ingredients
 

  • 1 tablespoon sesame Oil
  • 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons dark soy sauce see note
  • 1/4 cup honey or sugar
  • 1/4 cup rice wine or dry Sherry
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 2 tablespoons oil, for frying
  • 3 lb chicken pieces (about 8-10 pieces) or 1 whole chicken cut-up
  • 6 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 large onion, sliced into quarters then sliced into halves
  • 1 piece 2-inch fresh ginger, grated
  • 3 star anise
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 2 cinnamon sticks

Instructions
 

  • In a bowl, mix together the sesame oil, soy sauce, honey or sugar, water, and rice wine. Set aside.
  • Heat the oil to medium-high in a skillet or use the saute setting if using the Instant Pot Dutch oven slow cooker. Fry the chicken pieces in batches until nicely browned. Transfer to a plate as you cook each piece.
  • Leave but 1-2 tablespoons oil in the skillet or the Instant Pot Dutch oven slow cooker (add extra oil to the pan if needed). Adjust the heat to medium. Saute the garlic and onion until the onions begin to change color and is starting to soften (about 2-3 minutes). To the pan add the grated ginger, star anise, cloves, and cinnamon stick and saute briefly until aromatic. We need to heat up the spices to release their flavors.
  • If using a regular slow cooker, place the chicken pieces at the bottom of the pot. Add the spices on top and then pour on the soy sauce mixture. If using the Instant Pot Dutch oven slow cooker, simply return the chicken pieces to the pot then pour over the soy sauce mixture.
  • Cook on high for 2-3 hours or on low for 5-6 hours until chicken is tender.
  • Serve hot with some jasmine rice on the side and a little drizzle of the yummy sauce on top! If possible, cook this chicken dish one day ahead to fully develop the flavor. It's worth the wait!

Notes

TIPS & TRICKS
Light soy sauce is simply your regular soy sauce (and not salt-reduced soy sauce). It's called light because of the color and it's more diluted (less thick) than dark soy sauce. The latter is thicker in consistency and sweeter than regular soy sauce. Both types may be found in any Asian stores and labelled as such.
For this recipe, if you cannot find or don't have dark soy sauce - simply use about 1/3 cup of regular soy sauce.
If you don't have rice wine you can substitute it with 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar. However, use the rice wine to be more authentic.

Nutrition

Calories: 377kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 23gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 87mgSodium: 561mgPotassium: 283mgFiber: 1gSugar: 14gVitamin A: 166IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 2mg
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