Taiwanese Sesame Oil Chicken Stew

Earlier this year, I called my mom to ask her how to make muah yu gei which literally translates to sesame oil chicken in Taiwanese. I love this dish because it's delicious and a great weeknight dish for a busy working lady like myself. No one eats this dish 'as is' like this. You need carbs! I GUESS rice could do, but I will always use 'me sua' which literally translates to 'noodle thread' in Taiwanese. They're a super thin type of noodle used in a lot of Chinese and Japanese cooking, but I have no idea what they're called in English (apparently, they're called somen). Anyways, no substitutes as far as noodles go! You have to get the super thin noodles like the ones I have pictured.

• Preparation Time: 15 mins
• Cooking Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 45 mins
• Calories: 1185 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 ½ pounds bone-in chicken, cut into pieces
• ¾ cup rice wine
• ¾ cup dark sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons light sesame oil
• 7 slices fresh ginger root
• 1 (16 ounce) package uncooked somen noodles

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Stir in the chicken pieces, return to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes; drain. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over high heat. Stir in the chicken pieces, and cook until browned on the outside, about 3 minutes. Pour in the rice wine, dark sesame oil, light sesame oil, and ginger slices. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 3 minutes. Add the water, return to a boil, and cook until the chicken is no longer pink, and easily pulls away from the bone, about 5 minutes more.

Step 2

Meanwhile, fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, drop the somen in a few noodles at a time and return to a boil. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the noodles have cooked through, but are still firm to the bite, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink.

Step 3

Stir the somen noodles into the simmering chicken to serve.