Pan Roasted Cockerel with Chinese BBQ Spice by Victor Liong

SERVES:
4
PREP:
30 MINS
COOK:
25 MINS

A bold, smoky pan-roasted cockerel by Victor Liong, made with Aurum Cockerel and a house-blended Chinese BBQ spice mix of cumin, Sichuan pepper, fennel and gochugaru chilli.

The cockerel is cut into chunks and marinated in light soy, oyster sauce, Shaoxing rice wine and sesame oil, then pan-roasted and tossed through the freshly toasted spice mix. A quick aromatic sauce of garlic, ginger and chilli is drizzled over to finish, along with spring onion, coriander stems and a lift of fresh lemon zest.

As Victor notes, Aurum Cockerel has a well-balanced skin-to-meat ratio, with firmer, toothsome meat and an intense natural chicken flavour that stands up beautifully to big, punchy seasoning. Best enjoyed with steamed jasmine rice.

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INGREDIENTS

Ingredients

For the cockerel

  • 1 x Aurum Cockerel, cut into chunks
  • Vegetable oil, as needed
  • 30g garlic, peeled and minced
  • 15g ginger, peeled and minced
  • 40g spring onion, finely chopped
  • 40g coriander stems
  • Fine chilli, as needed
  • 1 lemon, for zesting

Marinade

  • 100g light soy sauce
  • 50g oyster sauce
  • 100g Shaoxing rice wine
  • 20g sesame oil

Chinese BBQ spice mix

Standard / lighter

  • 30g / 25g salt
  • 60g / 50g cumin seeds
  • 15g / 15g Sichuan peppercorns
  • 30g / 25g fennel seeds
  • 25g / 15g white sugar
  • 12g / 10g chicken powder
  • 30g / 25g white sesame seeds
  • 35g / 30g fine gochugaru chilli flakes

METHOD

Step 1: Marinate the cockerel

  1. Cut the cockerel into pieces.
  2. Marinate with the light soy sauce, oyster sauce, Shaoxing rice wine and sesame oil.

Step 2: Make the Chinese BBQ spice mix

  1. Gently toast the whole spices over low heat until fragrant.
  2. Cool completely, then coarsely grind.
  3. Mix with the salt, chicken powder, sugar and chilli flakes.

Step 3: Make the aromatic finishing sauce

  1. Heat oil in a small pan and sauté the minced garlic and ginger until aromatic.
  2. Add the fine chilli and fry briefly. Set aside.

Step 4: Pan-roast the cockerel

  1. Heat fresh oil in the main pan and add the marinated cockerel pieces.
  2. Pan-roast until golden and cooked through.
  3. Add the Chinese BBQ spice mix and toss well to coat the chicken evenly.

Step 5: Finish and serve

  1. Drizzle the aromatic finishing sauce over the chicken.
  2. Add the chopped spring onion and coriander stems.
  3. Finish with fresh lemon zest.
  4. Serve with jasmine rice.