Want to teach your kid to cook a main course dish they can’t really eff up? Soy Sauce Chicken. Out of inspo and don’t know what to cook? Soy Sauce Chicken. Need a dish that everyone will shut the heck up about and not whine “… but I don't like it”? Soy Sauce Chicken. The answer to world peace? Soy Sauce Chicken. You get the picture. And look, we get the major Cossie Livs issues ATM, so one of the the good things about Soy Sauce Chicken is that once you’ve served it, you can strain off the liquid, cool it down, then freeze it. Thaw it out the next time you want to cook this dish, topping it up with a bit of water if it’s evaporated too much to cover the bird, and you’re good to go. Just give it a bit of a boil for a few minutes before adding your chicken, just to be, you know, on the food-safe side. Salmonella is not your friend. You can use, reuse, and reuse that stock over and over again, ad Infinitum. And not only is there a bit of thrift going on here, arguably the stock gets better and tastier over time. If a thin layer of fat accumulates on top of it, it’s easy to remove once the stock cools if you refrigerate it. And look. If you don’t want to add the eggs or the tofu, all good. Just leave them out. Either way, serve your chicken with steamed rice, a simple green salad or – even better –  stir-fried Asian greens. That’s the easiest, and delicious-est, kind of dinner we know.

SERVES 4

1 tbsp vegetable oil

3 tsp sesame oil

1.5kg chicken pieces

3 garlic cloves, bruised

6 thin slices ginger

3 star anise

1 cinnamon stick

6 cloves

6 dried chillies

60ml (⅓ cup) light soy sauce

60ml (⅓ cup) sweet soy sauce

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

2 tbsp, firmly packed, brown sugar

500ml (2 cups) chicken stock or water 

300g firm tofu, cut into 2.5cm pieces

3 hard boiled eggs, halved

1 spring onion, thinly sliced

steamed rice and stir-fried Asian greens, to serve

Heat the oils in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the chicken, in batches if necessary, then cook for 5 minutes on each side or until browned all over. Transfer to a Chinese claypot with all the remaining ingredients except the tofu and eggs. 

Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low. Gently simmer, uncovered,  for 35 minutes or until the chicken is nearly cooked through, turning the chicken halfway through. Skim any excess fat from the surface. Add the tofu and egg, push the tofu into the soy sauce, then cover and cook for another 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the tofu and egg are heated. Scatter with spring onion, then serve with rice and stir-fried Asian greens.