Double Boil Chicken Essence 清燉鸡汁

Have you ever homemade chicken essence before? If you have not you should try at least once to make it, because it is really nutrition, is good for our body. When I was young, my mum always homemade the chicken essence using the metal double boiler pot burnt 10 hours under the charcoal. She has to watch the fire, added the charcoal to keep the fire burning. Lot of effort just for a bowl of nice chicken essence, the fragrant of the soup is very lovely, the soup is super nice! 

I cooked this chicken essence very often using a electric pot (slow cooker) since I discovered from a friend it can be done this way (it was six years ago) no need to take care of the fire. This post (I cooked this two weeks ago) is to record down how to double boil chicken essence, hope it can bring benefit to you too. 

The chicken use for chicken essence is usually the black chicken, as I didn't manage to buy the black chicken, I use the normal white chicken instead. A small one will do as the size is just right to fit into the slow cooker. You have to make sure you are using a big slow cooker which can put in a 22cm big bowl (this is the big bowl size I used for this cooking)

Ingredients:
a few pieces of chicken hearts (can omit if doesn't like)
a few pieces of chicken livers (can omit if doesn't like)
some cordyceps 冬虫夏草
some sliced ginseng 

a small chicken, remove skin, cut open the chest of the chicken, pound the chicken with heavy pound or using the back of the knife

a 22cm big bowl
a 16cm small bowl
a small plate
a big slow cooker

Note: can use different sizes of bowl but make sure after placing the chicken on top of the plate, the chicken didn't fall out of the boundary of the big bowl, as the purpose of the big bowl is to collect the dripping chicken essence. I yield 600ml of pure chicken essence after 7 hours of slow cooking.

Method:
1. Prepare a big slow cooker, add some water into the slow cooker. Water level has to reach and not more than 2/3 of the height of 22cm bowl which you will use to hold the chicken essence later. Switch on the power.

2. Wash the chicken hearts and livers.

3. Wash the cordyceps and sliced ginseng with water. 

4. Put the chicken liver, chicken hearts, cordyceps and ginseng in the 22cm big bowl. (without water in the bowl)

5. using a smaller bowl, but not too small as the chicken essence will be collected in it later. Upside down the bowl as shown.

6. Place a small plate on top of the 16cm bowl. (This will be the place for the chicken to "sit" on...haha)

7. Wash the chicken properly, remove the chicken skin and fat. Cut open the chest of the chicken, pound finely the chicken using a heavy metal or with the back of the knife as much as you can. Tied the chicken using kitchen twine as shown in the picture to hold up the chicken. Cut side has to face down.  

8. Ta..da.. it looks funny ya. the chicken has to sit on top of the plate and make sure it is within and in the boundary of the big bowl.

9. See there is the water in the slow cooker. Place the 22cm big bowl together with the chicken on top inside the slow cooker.

10. Press down if the chicken can not squeeze in the slow cooker, phew...luckily this small chicken can.

11. After 5 hours of cooking, I open the cover of the slow cooker to check on the water level in the cooker, add a bit of water if the water level for the slow cooker is too low.

Can see the chicken essence is there, the fragrant is lovely but the colour of the soup not yet there, another two more hours to go.

12. When you open the slow cooker, the pressure press down and the chicken essence will be suck into the small bowl. Notice the gaps between the chicken and the bowls.

13. Finally, after 7 hours of slow cooking, it left with a dry chicken.

14. 600ml of pure chicken essence.