Fusion Spicy Chicken Stew 辣豆酱炆鸡

I must confess. This Fusion Spicy Chicken Stew 辣豆酱炆鸡 was an accidental dish. I meant to cook Dakdoritang (Korean Spicy Chicken Stew for dinner today but realised that I ran out of the essential gochujang. Being a home-maker, though not a superb one, I knew it was my responsibility to troubleshoot in my own kitchen. Browsing through my refrigerator again, I found the Korean bean paste. I decided to give the gochujang a local twist by adding some South East Asian flavours. Yes...I did my own concoction by combining the Korean bean paste with sambal dry shrimps, paprika and grind nuts. Click here for the Fusion Spicy Bean Paste recipe. 

My husband and I had split opinions about this Fusion Spicy Chicken Stew 辣豆酱炆鸡 dish. He felt it's more of a local flavour whereas I thought the Korean bean paste being very prevalent and tasted more Korean. Despite our differences, we both agreed that it was actually a delicious dish! A nice change from the conventional styles.

Ingredients (enough for 2-4 pax with steamed rice) :

• 12 pieces chicken mid wings (cleaned and pre-marinated with a little salt and sesame oil)
• 2 medium to large sized potatoes (cut potatoes into quarters or wedges)
• 2 carrots (chopped into thick slices or chunks)
• 1 large onion (chopped into chunks)
• 6 cloves of garlic (pressed)
• 4 slices ginger
• 2 stalks of spring onions (chopped) 
• 1 tbsp dry shrimps (pre-soaked in water)
• water to boil

Seasonings :

• 2-3 tsp sugar (to taste)
• 3 tbsp rice wine or mirin
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp grounded black pepper
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 3 tbsp home-made fusion bean paste (click here for fusion bean paste recipe)
• chili powder (optional, add only if you want it more spicy)
• 1-2 cup water (subject to your pot size, use a little more water if pot size is large)
• cooking oil

(tsp = teaspoon; tbsp = tablespoon)    

Method :

1. Heat cooking oil in non-sticking pot or pan. 
2. Fry potato wedges till slight golden colour. Set aside pan fried potatoes. 
3. In a separate pot, heat cooking oil and toss in aromatic ingredients (i.e. ginger, onions, garlic. Lightly sauté at low-medium heat.
4. Toss in pre-soaked dried shrimps and give it a quick stir fry till aromatic.
5. Add home-made fusion spicy bean paste. Give a quick stir.
6. Add 1-2 cups water (subject to your pot size, the bigger the pot, the more water)
7. Turn to medium heat. Stir till mixture are all even in the pot.
8. Add chicken wings into pot.
9. Cover lid and allow to simmer for 10 minutes
10. Toss in potatoes and carrots after 10 minutes. Cover with lid and further simmer for another 10-15 minutes at low-medium heat. Give it a stir every now and then. 
11. Remove lid after 10-15 minutes and allow cooking for another 10 minutes at medium-high heat. 
12. Stir to check that all ingredients are thoroughly cooked and add a dash of sesame oil for the fragrance before transferring to serving bowl.
13. Garnish with spring onions and serve hot with steamed rice.

Tip : Do not cover with lid during last 10 minutes of cooking so that the sauce can be cooked down.

In terms of ingredients and cooking methods, this Fusion Spicy Chicken Stew 辣豆酱炆鸡 is almost identical to my previous Dakdoritang (Korean Spicy Chicken Stew recipe. I document it as a different recipe because it is not exactly Korean, plus I made some minor changes in the cooking sequence and method. All in all, it's still a great one pot dish!