Star Anise and Ginger Braised Chicken

This dish was simple to put together, made a lovely presentation over rice, and my guests asked for the recipe. It’s certainly easy enough for a weeknight dinner and delicious enough for a company meal.

I made the slow cooker version. Obviously the slow cooker version won’t have the crisp skin that the roasted version would, but it was delicious. I used to teach Chinese cooking and have made similar recipes but not a slow cooker version and wasn’t sure how I was going to like this. I didn’t brown the chicken but simply mixed the chicken pieces in the slow cooker with the garlic slivers, ginger, and the remaining ingredients. I added 1/4 cup of low-sodium coy sauce and 1/4 cup chicken stock and the honey. I thought I had Chinese rice wine but at the last minute realized I didn’t have either the rice wine, dry sherry, or sake, so I just omitted it. I cooked it on high for 2 hours, then low for 45 minutes. When I checked the chicken after 45 minutes, it was perfectly done but my slow cooker seems to run somewhat high.

The taste was lovely, though when I make it again—and I will—I might add a few more star anise to give it a little more zing. The recipe calls for reducing the liquid, however, I removed the pieces of ginger, garlic, and star anise and added rice to the slow cooker and continued cooking it until the rice was ready and served the chicken on top of the rice with scallions sprinkled on top. It was a very big hit with my tasters.

My chicken cooked rather quickly even in the slow cooker but, as I mentioned, mine seems to cook somewhat hot, possibly because it’s 28 years old and well used, rather than newer models which probably have more controls. All slow cookers, though, vary in their heat, no matter what the setting. But next time I make this recipe I’ll set it on high for about 45 minutes and then switch to low.

I really liked the crock pot version of the recipe. I used skinless bone-in chicken thighs. (I think the chicken skin is unpleasant when slow cooked over a long time.) To keep the liquid that accumulates in the pot over the long cooking time to a flavorful minimum, I kept the liquid measures the same and doubled the rest of the ingredients. The chicken went in first and then the rest was combined and poured over the chicken. This cooked on low for 4 hours and then was turned to the keep warm setting for another 4 hours.

I removed the chicken to a platter and it was cooked through and tender, but not overcooked to the point where it was off the bone. I made a corn starch slurry of a scant 1 tbs corn starch to 1/4 cup cold water. This was stirred into the sauce remaining in the pot and the pot was turned to high. This thickened the sauce slightly but not too thick. I added the chicken back to the crock pot and turned it back to keep warm.

I think I’ll do this again as it was so good and easier to make this time. I served this over plain brown rice.

I made this recipe in the slow cooker and the result was an amazingly flavorful chicken dish with just 2 spices—ginger and star anise. The aroma of the star anise filed the kitchen while it was cooking.

I used 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. I put the chicken in the slow cooker, mixed the rest of the ingredients except the scallions in a bowl, and poured it over the chicken. Cooked it on high for about 4 hours. The result was a flavorful, moist, fall-off-the-bone chicken.

I poured the left over liquid into a bowl and blast chilled it (on my back deck over the snow). In 20 minutes, i could skim off the fat. And then I reduced the liquid by half (boiled it on high for 10 minutes) and poured it over the chicken. Garnished it with chopped scallions.

i served it with rice and my dinner guests were raving about the dish and requested the recipe.

I felt the need for a little heat in the sauce so I added 1 tsp chili flakes and, to thicken the gravy a little, 1/2 tsp cornstarch in a splash of cold water and boiled it. I also served chili oil on the side in case we needed it to be a 5-alarm chicken. A versatile and essential recipe in a cook’s collection.

WOW! DELICIOUS! This recipe is so easy to make! I love how quickly this came together.

I used little chicken drumettes. Next time, I’ll use boneless, skinless chicken, maybe thighs. I would imagine if I cubed up boneless skinless thighs, it would be the makings of a great chicken and rice bowl.

I didn’t have Chinese rice wine so I substituted sherry and it tasted fine. I also added about 1/3 cup OJ and skipped the stock/water. The end result did not have a lot of sauce at the end but it was delicious and the flavor really got into the chicken. I’m saving this one for a busy weeknight dinner! Teenager and husband approved!

This was a fantastic dinner. Everyone loved it.

To make this recipe slow cooker friendly, I browned the skin of the chicken the night before I planned on using it. The next morning I placed the ingredients in the crock pot, beginning with the chicken. Even though I mixed all the liquid ingredients together, I only poured half of the mixture into the crock pot with the chicken. When I returned home from work, I pulled the chicken out of the slow cooker. The skin slid right off and the chicken was fork-tender. I placed the reserved sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and added a slurry of 1 tbsp cornstarch to 1 tbsp water. I also add the liquid from the crock pot. Allowing the liquid to come to a simmer over medium heat, I slowly whisked in the slurry. The sauce thickened up in a matter of a couple of minutes.

I served the chicken with rice and poured the sauce over the top of the skinned chicken and rice.