This star anise and ginger braised chicken with soy sauce is a healthy meal that will fill your kitchen with exotic aromas and can be made in a single pot on the stove-top or in the slow cooker.

Adapted from Laura Washburn | Home-Cooked Comforts: Oven-Bakes, Casseroles and Other One-Pot Dishes | Ryland Peters & Small, 2010

A wonderfully simple and healthy way to enjoy chicken that will also fill your kitchen with exotic aromas, this star anise and ginger braised chicken is a real crowd pleaser. It gets better with time, so it's worthwhile preparing it in advance or making a big batch to ensure leftovers. (Use two small chickens or a couple packages of chicken pieces and double all the other ingredients.)–Laura Washburn

Star Anise and Ginger Braised Chicken

A crock filled with browned chicken thighs and sliced scallions, a spatula in the middle

This star anise and ginger braised chicken with soy sauce is a healthy meal that will fill your kitchen with exotic aromas and can be made in a single pot on the stove-top or in the slow cooker.

Prep 15 mins

Cook 25 mins

Total 40 mins

  • Slow cooker (if following the slow cooker method)

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces (whatever kind you please) or 1 1/2 pounds (680 g) boneless chicken breast
  • Sea salt
  • 1-inch piece ginger peeled and cut into thin strips
  • 3 garlic cloves thinly sliced
  • 1/3 cup Chinese rice wine (in a pinch you could use dry sherry or sake)
  • 1/2 cup homemade chicken stock, low-sodium canned chicken broth, or water
  • 1 tablespoon runny honey
  • 1 star anise
  • 1/4 cup light or low-sodium soy sauce (trust us you really want to use low-sodium soy sauce here)
  • 3 to 4 tablespoons fresh clementine or orange juice if desired
  • 2 scallions (white and green parts) thinly sliced

  • To make the Star Anise and Ginger Braised Chicken in your slow cooker, see the Slow Cooker Variation below.

    To make the Star Anise and Ginger Braised Chicken on your stovetop, heat the oil in a large saucepan. If desired, remove the skin from the chicken. Place the chicken in the pan, skin-side down, being careful not to crowd the pieces. (You may need to work in batches.) Cook until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and season lightly with salt.

  • Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of oil from the pan. Add the ginger, garlic, rice wine, stock or water, honey, star anise, and soy sauce to the pan and bring to a boil. Add the clementine juice and the chicken, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer very gently for 15 minutes.

  • Then turn the chicken pieces and continue to simmer gently until cooked through, about 5 minutes more, depending on the size of the chicken pieces. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the chicken to a plate.

  • Skim any fat from the surface of the sauce. Take a sip of the sauce and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. Return the liquid to a simmer and reduce slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. (Be mindful that reducing it too much could cause the sauce to seem quite salty.)

  • Remove and discard the star anise. Return the chicken to the pan and turn to coat it in the sauce. Sprinkle with the scallions.

Star Anise And Ginger Braised Chicken

Slow Cooker

We invariably rely on skinless chicken for the slow-cooker rendition of this ginger-infused recipe—after all, nobody likes flabby chicken skin, do they? Place the chicken in the slow cooker and combine the remaining ingredients, except for the scallions, in a bowl or a large measuring cup and stir to combine. Pour the mixture over the chicken. Cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or low for 6 to 8 hours. Transfer the chicken to a platter. If a thicker sauce is desired, slowly stir a little cornstarch slurry into the sauce in the stock pot, place it on high and let it simmer until thickened to the desired consistency (to make a cornstarch slurry, we tend to use 1 tablespoon cornstarch stirred into 1/4 cup cold water). Return the chicken to the sauce just until warmed through, then transfer the whole shebang back to the platter and sprinkle with the scallions.

[Editor's Note: Bear in mind, no two slow cookers are exactly alike, just as no two cooks are exactly alike. This slow-cooker approach worked really, really well for us, although if you have a different slow-cooker cooking technique you want to try by all means, do so. And, natch, we'd love if you'd share it with us in a comment below.] Curious to hear more about working magic with your slow cooker? Peruse our entire selection of slow cooker recipes.

Star Anise and Ginger Braised Chicken Wings

We don't know about you, but when a recipe calls for generic "chicken parts," we tend to assume breasts or thighs or drumsticks. But why not wings? (And not just wings, but how about those meaty little drummettes?!) To make wings (or other parts) for a crowd, opt for a large roasting pan, cover the wings and sauce with foil, and roast at 350°F (176°C) for about 30 minutes. Uncover and roast until the meat is cooked through and the skin is slightly crisp and the sauce has reduced, about 15 minutes or so. Then pass the napkins.

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Originally published March 08, 2020

Recipe © 2010 Laura Washburn. Photo © 2010 Martin Brigdale. All rights reserved. All materials used with permission.

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