Bang Bang Chicken (Bang Bang Ji)

Ingredients

• 2 large bone-in chicken legs, about 700g total
• 30g ginger, sliced
• 3 spring onions, whole
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 1 large cucumber
• 3 tbsp Chinese sesame paste
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Chinkiang vinegar
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 4 tbsp Sichuan chilli oil, with sediment
• 1 tsp ground roasted Sichuan pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp roasted peanuts, crushed
• 2 spring onions, green parts finely sliced

Before you cook

• Sit the chicken legs in a pan just wide enough to hold them and tuck in the sliced ginger and whole spring onions.
• Halve the cucumber lengthways, scrape out the seeds and cut the flesh into batons the length of your finger.
• Toss the cucumber with a pinch of salt and set it in a sieve over a bowl to drain.

Steps

1. Pour cold water over the chicken until it is covered by 3cm, then add the Shaoxing wine and salt.
2. Bring the pan slowly to a bare simmer over medium heat, skimming off any foam.
3. Cook at the barest simmer for 18 minutes, with the water shivering rather than bubbling.
4. Turn off the heat, cover the pan and leave the chicken to sit in the hot liquid for another 15 minutes.
5. Lift the chicken into a bowl of iced water for 5 minutes to firm the skin.
6. Drain the chicken and pat it dry, keeping 4 tablespoons of the poaching broth.
7. Lay the legs on a board and beat them along their length with a rolling pin until the meat loosens from the bone.
8. Pull the meat off the bones and tear it into thick shreds with your fingers.
9. Loosen the sesame paste in a bowl with the reserved warm broth, adding it a spoonful at a time until it pours.
10. Whisk in the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, grated garlic and ground roasted Sichuan pepper.
11. Stir in the chilli oil and sesame oil until the dressing turns glossy and rust coloured.
12. Squeeze the cucumber dry and spread it over a serving plate.
13. Pile the shredded chicken on top of the cucumber.
14. Spoon the dressing over the chicken so it runs down into the cucumber underneath.
15. Finish with the crushed peanuts and sliced spring onion greens, and toss it all at the table.