Beggar's Chicken — Jiaohuaji

The Jiangsu style of jiàohuā jī (beggar's chicken) is the sister preparation to the Hangzhou version from neighbouring Zhejiang — both are made within the Jiangnan culinary tradition and share the basic technique of wrapping a whole stuffed chicken in lotus leaves before encasing it in clay or dough and slow-baking. The Jiangsu version places greater emphasis on the stuffing, making it a more complex dish in terms of flavour.

The stuffing uses a combination of soaked dried shiitake mushrooms, minced fatty pork, strips of Jinhua ham (China's prestige air-cured ham, produced in Jinhua, Zhejiang — similar in concept to Spanish jamón), the chicken's own liver and gizzard, spring onion, ginger and Shaoxing rice wine. Together this is a rich, aromatic filling that perfumes the bird's interior throughout the long cooking.

The preparation: the chicken is trussed with legs tied and wings folded, then heavily coated in marinade. Three to four layers of lotus leaves are wrapped tightly around the bird, overlapping to create a sealed parcel with no gaps — the lotus leaves trap every drop of steam released by the chicken during cooking. This parcel is then encased in a thick shell of salt-and-flour paste or a clay-like dough, sealed fully, and baked at moderate heat for two to four hours.

The steam environment inside means the skin does not brown or crisp — it remains pale and tender. The flesh is extraordinarily moist from the sealed-in juices, and the lotus leaf fragrance permeates the meat.

The outer shell is cracked at the table before serving — a moment the better restaurants treat with some ceremony, as the contained aroma is released all at once. Advance ordering of at least a day is typically required.