Braised chicken wings and potatoes

薯仔炆雞翼。Who can resist this dish? Packed with sweet, savoury and umami flavours from caramelised onions and carrots, accompanied with a mixture of textures from the chicken meat and mushed up potatoes, I’d call this one of the most popular home cooked dishes in Hong Kong households, at least when I was growing up.

When I first moved to the UK, I had difficultly finding juicy chicken meats. Chicken breasts which are most commonly found in supermarkets and at restaurants tend to be dry and bland. Later on, I noticed there are more offerings of chicken thighs, and lately, good value and quality chicken wings too. I have come across many health scares around chicken wings claiming that wings are where growth hormones get injected in chickens so a high consumption of these may lead to cancer. The truth is, steroid hormones are banned for use in Europe and the US. Also, even if so, the amount of steroid hormone that is can be passed on through meat of a treated animal is negligible compared to what the human body produces each day.

For me, I was ecstatic when I saw these offered at Waitrose. Priced at £1.55 for 475g/around 1lb (approx. 10 drums), they can be added to a variety of dishes – grilled, steamed or stewed. To keep the fat content down, the skin can be removed but I find it a useful source of oil for cooking and only need a dash of soy sauce or half teaspoon of sugar or squirt of honey for flavour.

Braised chicken wings and potatoes

Take

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 small onion, peeled and sliced

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 carrot, peeled and sliced

2 tomatoes, sliced

1 pack chicken wings

1 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp sugar

dash of brandy (optional)

100ml water

Make

Brown the onions in oil, add potatoes, carrots and tomatoes. Cook for 4-5 minutes, then add chicken wings, brandy (if using), soy sauce and sugar. Stir well, add water to cook for 10 minutes.

Serve

3 adult portions. Ideally with rice.

Nutrition

Braised chicken wings and potatoes

Georgine