At the table
Take small pieces to eat with rice and check carefully for bones before chewing.
This dish contains chicken and chilies. Pieces may contain bones; check each piece carefully, especially when serving children.
GET TO KNOW THE DISH
What goes into it?
Explore some key ingredients below. Preparations may use additional seasonings and ingredients.
The type of vinegar varies between recipes; sourness and chili heat define the dish.
Typical ingredients
In some versions
Recipes vary by restaurant.
How does it taste?
Sour and spicy.
- Chili heat
- Texture
- Tender chicken with a light, glossy sauce.
- How it’s made
- Poach the chicken, cut it, then stir-fry and briefly braise with vinegar and aromatics.
The type of vinegar varies between recipes; sourness and chili heat define the dish.
A CONNECTION TO PLACE
Origin & regional roots
Associated with Hunan.
Ask if they have it first
请问你们有东安子鸡吗？
Do you have this item?
A LITTLE SOMETHING TO READ
Story & history
Dong’an’s sour-and-spicy chicken
Dong’an chicken is a specialty of Dong’an County in Hunan. Young chicken is first poached, then cut and stir-fried before a short braise with vinegar and aromatics. Ginger, red and green chilies, and garlic bring color and fragrance; rice vinegar gives the dish its characteristic tang. Recipes use different vinegars and seasonings, but the combination of tender chicken, sourness and chili heat is its recognizable signature.