Jiangnan · main
Drunken Chicken
醉鸡 · Zuìjī
Chicken steamed and marinated in Shaoxing rice wine, served chilled. A Shanghai banquet starter.
Drunken chicken is a cold appetiser from the Shanghai-Jiangnan tradition. A whole chicken is gently steamed, deboned, then marinated for 12+ hours in a brine of Shaoxing rice wine, salt, ginger, scallion, and goji berries. The chicken absorbs the wine flavour and turns subtly aromatic. Served chilled, sliced, with a small dish of the marinade.
Where to try
Shanghai banquet restaurants. Hairy crab houses often serve drunken chicken alongside.
Dietary notes
Chicken, alcohol.
Cities to try Drunken Chicken
Other east dishes
- Beggar's Chicken叫花鸡
A whole chicken stuffed with aromatics, wrapped in lotus leaves and clay, then slow-baked until the meat steams in its own juices.
- Beggar's Chicken — Jiaohuaji叫花鸡 (江苏式)
A Jiangsu-province variation of clay-baked chicken with a lotus-leaf wrap and a mushroom and pork stuffing.
- Dragon Well Tea龙井茶
China's most celebrated green tea — pan-fired flat leaves from Hangzhou's West Lake district with a sweet, chestnut flavour.
- Eight-Treasure Rice八宝饭
A steamed dome of glutinous rice layered with red bean paste and decorated with eight types of preserved fruits and nuts.