Huo Jiao Ji - Sichuan Peppercorns Chicken

A very flavorful chicken recipe to serve in large bowl and eat over rice with steamed vegetables.
Ingredients
- 1 large chicken, including head, organs and feet, chopped into uneven pieces, or chopped into 2 inch cubes
- 3 large Chinese Black cardamom pods, whole
- 3 White cardamom pods, whole
- 3 large Star Anise, or 6 small star anis, whole
- 30-40 small branches of Sichuan peppercorn leaves/or 2 tsp of red Sichuan peppercorns, whole
- 5 dried red chilies, chopped into large pieces
- 3 large shallots, chopped into large pieces
- 1 large head of garlic, broken into whole cloves
- 2 medium sized whole ginger roots, smashed
- ½ can of beer (optional)
Method
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1
Heat your wok and pour ½ cup of oil.
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2
When the oil is hot but not burning, put the star anis, red chilies, black cardamom and white cardamom and stir for 45 sec-1 min (add the Sichuan peppercorns at this point if you do not have the leaves).
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3
Add the chicken and stir fry stirring almost constantly for 10 minutes.
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4
Add the garlic and shallots, stir fry for 2 minutes.
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5
Add the ginger, stir fry for another 2 minutes.
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6
Lower the temperature under your wok, allowing the contents to gently simmer for 20 min.
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7
Cover for the last 3 min of cooking time (at this point the addition of ½ can of beer is optional, but may dry out the chicken a bit)