Broiled Five-Spice Chicken

Five spice powder is a common Chinese seasoning, which contains star anise, fennel, cloves, cinnamon, and Szechwan pepper. A flavorful blend of sweet, sour, bitter, savory and salty!

I picked up this seasoning awhile ago so, I decided to make my chicken dinner tonight a bit exciting! I found this recipe at www.epicurious.com, but I omitted the ground star-anise from the recipe since I don't want my chicken to be overpowered with the anise flavor ;-)

Well, my husband took his first bite of his chicken and he was speechless, all I heard were moaning and groaning...I thought I did something wrong, but I guess he totally fell in love with this dish! He is currently kissing the ground I walk on as we speak (just kidding). Anyway, he told me it's the best chicken dinner he ever had! It's hard to explain the taste, but there's a TRUE balance between the sweetness and saltiness of the seasoning! The chicken was crispy in the outside while juicy and tender in the inside. You just have to try this recipe! It's really awesome!

Actually this afternoon I had a surprise visit from Elena. We chatted for awhile. I asked her to stay for dinner, but it was getting late and she still has to take care of her honey, too! Elena, you should've stayed over for dinner...you just missed my incredible chicken...maybe next time...hehehehe!

Ingredients:
2 lbs. of Chicken Quarters or Whole Chicken, cut into pieces
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
3 Tablespoons minced ginger
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
1/2 Tablespoon sea salt


Directions:
Combine vegetable oil, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sugar, tumeric, five-spice powder, sea salt in a large bowl. Add chicken pieces into the mixture and turn to coat evenly. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.

Bake chicken at 350°F in the oven for about 35-45 minutes. Then, broil it for about 5-7 minutes or until crisp and golden brown. Serve with a soy-lime dipping sauce and/or pickled papaya (Atchara...or as close to Sauerkraut to Germans!) with steamed white rice.

Soy-Lime Dipping Sauce
1 clove garlic
2 fresh Thai bird chilies
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce, preferably Chinese style
2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice with pulp
1/4 cup water, or to taste

Mix all the above ingredients. Sauce will keep up to 3 weeks if stored in the refrigerator in a tight lid container.