Macun Braised Chicken 马村烧鸡

Macun Braised Chicken (马村烧鸡) is local chicken stewed in master stock with spices, a Jiaozuo (焦作) speciality that the Jiaozuo Daily (焦作日报) credits to the cook Duan Xiujing (段秀景), whose Macun chicken was already famous across the city in 1981.

How it is made

The chickens are local birds, and the Jiaozuo Daily counts more than ten stages and several spices in the process. At the head shop on Tabei Road (塔北路), Duan fills the pot with old master stock (老汤) and water, brings it to the boil, adds Sichuan pepper, clove and other seasonings, and lets the stock cook for half an hour before the chickens go in. After a little over an hour of stewing, the first pot of the day is lifted out of the stock.

Flavour and texture

The Jiaozuo Daily describes the chicken as strongly aromatic, with meat that falls away from the bone and a fresh, mellow flavour. In Duan's words, a chicken made from a fresh bird is so soft, bones and meat together, that it comes apart at the first touch of the chopsticks, with a salty, savoury smell.

Where it comes from

At New Year and other festivals Macun chicken is a dish on many Jiaozuo tables. From 1995, under Duan's guidance, other cooks opened branches on Gongzi Road (工字路), Gongye Road (工业路), Jianshe West Road (建设西路) and Jiefang East Road (解放东路), using the same sign, seasonings, packaging, process and price. Duan registered the trademark and applied for a patent in July 1999. In October 2000 the chicken won a gold award at an international invention and new-technology products fair in Tianjin, and in December 2000 Henan province named "Macun Shaoji" a well-known trademark.

How it is eaten

The chicken is sold vacuum-packed as well as freshly cooked. Duan says a vacuum-packed bird keeps for a few days, while one cooked and sold fresh has to be eaten the same day.