Roasted Chicken with Sticky Rice

1. Make your preparations first, soaking the mushrooms and chopping the onion, garlic, shallot and scallion. Cut the sausage into small discs and slice the mushrooms (after soaking and draining) lengthwise into thin strips.

2. Combine the shallot, garlic, the first 1 1/2 tablespoons of soy sauce, the shaoxing wine, 1 teaspoon five spice powder, and sesame oil in a medium sized stainless steel or glass bowl. Add the chicken to the mixture and coat it in the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator to marinate for 1 to 2 hours.

3. Follow the directions on the package for cooking the sticky rice. If you have one you can use a rice cooker to make things easy.

4. Heat a splash of oil in a wok using medium heat, and cook the onion until translucent. Add the Chinese sausage (if using) and cook for another minute. Then add the shiitake mushrooms, scallion, and ground white pepper to taste. Cook another minute and add in the cooked sticky rice, 1 teaspoon of salt and that additional 1 teaspoon of soy sauce. Mix thoroughly then transfer the rice mixture out of the pan into a bowl to allow it to cool off.

5. Preheat oven to 375 F, Remove the chicken from the fridge. Make six small rice balls, about 2/3 cup each and wrap a chicken thigh tightly around each portion (when you debone the chicken thigh, it should be in sort of a butterfly shape, which allows you to fold it over the rice, kind of like a taco). Lay them in a baking dish, rice side down. Add 2 cups of chicken stock to the baking dish and reserve the rest if needed during baking.

6. Combine ½ teaspoon of salt with 1/2 teaspoon of five spice powder to make the five spice salt, and sprinkle a dash of the mixture over the skin of each chicken portion. Bake for about 35 minutes, and add additional broth if the bottom of the pan looks dry. Watch it closely, as you don’t want to overcook the chicken. Once the meat is cooked through, turn on the broiler (low setting) and broil for 2-3 minutes until the skin is golden brown. Don’t walk away as it broils! Watch it like a hawk to prevent burning. Serve immediately, and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and chopped scallions if you want to go festive!