Today, I was searching for ingredients at home to prepare chicken soup. I found some dried straw mushrooms that were left over from stir-frying them with meat the other day. I heard that chicken stewed with straw mushrooms is very nutritious, so I decided to give it a try. After several hours of work, I finally succeeded. I will share with you what I learned while preparing the straw mushroom and chicken dish.
Method One for Cooking Chicken with Straw Mushrooms
Ingredients Preparation
One whole chicken, 50g dried straw mushrooms, one piece of ginger, one green onion, a small amount of star anise, a small amount of Sichuan pepper, a little soy sauce, a little sugar, an appropriate amount of salt, a little coriander.
Steps
1. Clean the dried straw mushrooms and soak them in warm water for 30 minutes, then drain the water. Slice the ginger and cut the green onion into sections.
2. Clean the chicken and chop it into small pieces. Blanch it in boiling water to remove the scum, then remove and set aside.
3. Heat oil in a wok over high heat. Add ginger slices, green onion sections, star anise, and Sichuan pepper, sauté until fragrant. Then add chicken pieces and stir-fry until the chicken changes color.
4. Add the straw mushrooms and stir-fry. Add sugar and soy sauce, continue to stir-fry. After stirring evenly, add enough boiling water to cover all the ingredients.
5. When the broth starts boiling, reduce the heat to medium. Stew for 30 minutes, then add salt. Continue to stew for about 20 minutes until the broth thickens. Garnish with chopped green onions and coriander before serving.
Method Two for Cooking Chicken with Straw Mushrooms
Ingredients Preparation
30g straw mushrooms, 600g chicken, 10g salt.
Steps
1. Remove the head, feathers, claws, and internal organs of the chicken, clean it, and set aside for use.
2. Soak the straw mushrooms in water, clean them, and set aside for use.
3. Blanch the chicken pieces in boiling water and set aside for use.
4. Place the chicken and straw mushrooms in a soup pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
5. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about one and a half hours. Add salt and simmer for another half hour or so.
Method Three for Cooking Chicken with Straw Mushrooms
Ingredients Preparation
One young chicken, dried straw mushrooms, garlic, ginger, dried chili peppers, bay leaves, soy sauce, beer, monosodium glutamate, salt, sugar, oil.
Steps
1. Clean the young chicken, chop it into pieces, blanch it in boiling water to remove blood foam, and set aside for use.
2. Soak the dried straw mushrooms in water for about half an hour, then remove and drain.
3. Heat oil in a pan, add the chicken pieces and stir-fry. When the color changes, add ginger slices, garlic slices, bay leaves, and dried chili pepper segments, and stir-fry until fragrant.
4. Then add beer, sugar, monosodium glutamate, soy sauce, and salt, and stir-fry evenly.
5. Transfer to a pressure cooker, add the straw mushrooms, and add enough boiling water to cover the ingredients.
6. After the pressure cooker starts steaming on high heat, reduce the heat and cook under pressure for about 20 minutes.
Method Four for Cooking Chicken with Straw Mushrooms
Ingredients Preparation
One free-range chicken, straw mushrooms, white ginseng, red dates, wolfberries, lotus seeds, rice wine, salt.
Steps
1. Clean the straw mushrooms, wolfberries, and red dates, and soak them for use.
2. Clean the free-range chicken, chop it into pieces. Boil it and remove it after the water boils, get rid of the blood water and set aside for use.
3. Add enough cold water to the pot once, put in the chicken that has been blanched, ginger slices, lotus seeds, and rice wine. Bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer for one hour.
4. Then add the straw mushrooms, wolfberries, and red dates, and continue to simmer for about 40 minutes. Add salt, monosodium glutamate, and white pepper, mix well for seasoning.
Tips
When adding water, add enough water at one time, and do not add more water halfway through.
Tips for Cooking Soup with Straw Mushrooms
1. When braising, after stir-frying, it's easier to infuse flavors, but when adding water, it must be boiling water.
2. When making clear soup, add cold water once, and the chicken needs to be blanched, so the soup will be clear.