What are the ingredients for beggar’s chicken?

In ancient times, beggars were also called beggars, and these beggars were not useless to society, they were just restricted by the conditions at the time. As far as food is concerned, there is still a very popular delicacy to this day, and its inventor was none other than the ancient beggars, which is beggar's chicken. Nowadays, many people claim that they can cook beggar's chicken, but the taste always seems to be worse. So, what are the authentic ingredients of beggar’s chicken?

Beggar's chicken, also known as Changshu beggar's chicken and stewed chicken, is a traditional dish in Changshu, Jiangsu. The processed chicken is wrapped in mud and lotus leaves. The ingredients used include fresh lotus leaves, yellow mud, live native chickens, etc.

The preparation method of Beggar's Chicken is similar to that of "Pao Tuan", one of the "Eight Delicacies" of the Zhou Dynasty. "Pao Tuan" is a dish made by wrapping a suckling pig with clay, grilling it, and then further processing it.

It has a bright red color, a tangy aroma, crispy crust and tender meat, and is soft and tender when eaten, with a unique flavor.

According to legend, a long time ago, there was a beggar who begged for food along the way and ended up in a village in Changshu County. One day, he happened to get a chicken and wanted to slaughter and cook it, but he had neither cooking utensils nor seasonings. He came to the foot of Yushan Mountain, killed the chicken, removed the viscera, smeared yellow mud and firewood on the feathers, and roasted the chicken over the fire. When the mud dried and the chicken was cooked, he peeled off the mud shell and the feathers along with the mud shell, revealing the chicken meat.

The most original approach

Ingredients: Several fresh tender lotus leaves, sufficient yellow mud, a live native chicken, and N meters of cotton thread.

practice:

1. Break the neck of a live chicken - without bleeding or plucking the feathers;

2. Make a small opening from the back door and take out the internal organs and clean the cavity.

3. Apply seasonings in the cavity according to personal taste. You can also put spices, but generally they are not put because the taste of spices can easily take away the fragrance of lotus leaves;

4. Add some water to the yellow mud to make a thick slurry. Use the mud to cover the chicken, making sure it penetrates to the roots of the hair, and spread it evenly on the surface into an ellipsoid shape;

5. Wrap the ball tightly with lotus leaves and tie it with cotton thread;

6. Dig a hole in the ground and bury the ball in it. Fill the hole and make sure the surface of the ball is 10 cm above the ground.

7. Make a bonfire on top, not too big to avoid uneven heating. Wait for the fire to die out and cool down naturally, then dig out the chicken balls and knock them with a stone.

The mud on the surface of the chicken balls will break up and come off easily, along with the hairs. Not a single hair will be left and the chicken balls are ready to eat.

Disadvantages: Not hygienic enough.