Kanazawa-style Simmered Chicken and Tofu (Jibuni)

Ingredients

• 200g/7.1oz chicken thigh fillets (skin on or off)
• 1 tbsp flour (or cornflour/corn starch)
• 150g/5.3oz thick fried tofu (note 1)
• 4 shiitake mushrooms (medium size), stems removed
• 50g/1.8oz carrot , thinly sliced to 5mm thick round pieces
• Few stems of Choy sum (or spinach)

Broth

• 400ml/13.5oz dashi stock
• 30ml/1oz soy sauce
• 40ml/1.4oz mirin
• 10ml/0.3oz sake

Garnish (optional)

• Wasabi

Instructions

1. Slice chicken diagonally into thin bite size pieces – about 1cm thick (note 2). Coat each piece of chicken with flour.
2. Add boiling water over the thick fried tofu to remove excess oil. Cut it in half lengthwise, then slice perpendicular to the fist cut into 2cm thick blocks.
3. Blanch carrots for 1 minute and drain.
4. Blanch Choy sum stems for 30 seconds, then cool them down quickly in cold water or under running water. Squeeze water out of the stems and cut them into 4cm long.
5. Add the Broth ingredients to a saucepan. Add fried tofu pieces, shiitake mushrooms and carrots to the pan and bring it to a boil.
6. Reduce the heat to medium high and cook for 6-7 minutes until vegetables are cooked through.
7. Add chicken pieces one by one gently, ensuring that the whole piece submerges in the broth.
8. Cook for 3 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. You will notice that the broth becomes thickened from the flour on the chicken.
9. Turn the heat off and transfer individual pieces from the pan to the serving bowls, clustering the same ingredients together.
10. Place Choy sum on the side and serve with a small amount of wasabi on top.