Monday 28 September 2020

Toban Djan Honey Chicken


My first introduction to toban djan (chilli bean sauce) was at Esquire Kitchen in Bangsar some years ago. It was a farewell lunch for a colleague, if I remember correctly. The toban djan was served as a dipping sauce.

I thought it was quite nice - salty, pungent and robust. That was the last time I had toban djan until some years later when I discovered Lee Kum Kee's toban djan sauce.


I have been buying it on and off to make toban djan marinade for roast chicken. 

On its own, the chili bean sauce is very pungent and strong tasting. But add on some other ingredients, it mellows and becomes more agreeable.


When making a marinade, always make more so that there is more than enough to coat the chicken and have some leftover for basting or to make a sauce.


This batch was roasted the week before and lacked marinade, hence that lackluster dryish look. You see, I have not made marinade for roast chicken for quite some time, so I forgot the SOP hah..hah...

So I wised up and made double last weekend. The result was so much better in terms of appearance and taste.


This lot went into my food prep. I let the chicken cool down and I de-boned it using my trusty kitchen scissors. It is so much easier to eat in the office as I would not want to be struggling with bones. That's probably another reason why people prefer using chicken breast fillets - no bone to deal with.


So here is the recipe in case anyone is interested.

Toban Djan Honey Roasted Chicken
Recipe source : PH

Ingredients :
- 4 chicken legs, thigh and drumstick separated (you can leave it whole if you prefer)

Marinade :
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 1 heaped teaspoon finely minced ginger
- 1 tablespoon light soya sauce
- 3 tablespoons toban djan
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (or any vegetable oil)
- a dash of freshly cracked black pepper

Method :
1. Combine all the marinade ingredients.
2. Put chicken pieces into a ziplock bag and pour over the marinade.
3. Squish the bag to distribute the marinade evenly over the chicken pieces and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight (I marinated for 2 days)
4. Before roasting, take the chicken out from the fridge and let stand for about 1/2 hour.
5. Line a baking tray and place chicken pieces in a single layer.
6. Reserve the extra marinade and use for basting the chicken or just pour over the chicken before roasting.
7. Roast at 180C for about 40 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

21 comments:

  1. That should be available here - will look out for it. Looks good, can try!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Roasted chicken looked good. Never try that paste before. Actually Lee Kum Kee has few nice pastes and sauces.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There is one sauce that seems to have dissapered - Lee Kim Kee black bean sauce. I used to buy that one as well.

      Delete
  3. Lee kum kee spells toban djan this way which is not the pinyin way. I know toban djan as mien si cos when young, my mother would steam pork ribs with mien si aka fermented soy bean paste. Have you eaten steamed pork ribs with toban djan? Often served in dim sum restaurants.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No, I have not had steamed pork ribs with toban djan. Perhaps I could try doing it myself.

      Delete
  4. I don't think I have eaten toban djan roasted chicken before but I believe it would be tasty. No bones is the only way to eat for me. I am so lazy. Your bento looks so delicious! Thanks for the recipe. I am sure Nancy or EwEw would use your recipe to roast some toban djan chicken. Yummy! πŸ˜‹πŸ˜‹πŸ˜‹

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are welcome. I believe your other half can cook this for you hee..hee...

      Delete
  5. Your roast chicken looks so delicious and it is making me very hungry now. I am going to have an early dinner. I think I want to try your recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  6. the name of the sauce sounds unfamiliar to me but after reading through the comments, I got to know that it is mien si...which is a common Chinese household sauce...we always have a jar in the kitchen, but it is normally used to cook pork dishes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like bean paste and my mum used to cook chicken with it. Pork too, and it is so yummy.

      Delete
  7. i'm happy to eat the whole irresistible-looking plate of six pieces on its own - no need to add vegetables and mushrooms for me! :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can tell that you are more inclined towards being a carnivore! hee..hee...

      Delete
  8. Oh yes, I like that bean paste dip in Esquire Kitchen too...but it's very salty-lah! ;) I've never bought this chilli bean sauce or the plain bean paste (aka mien si but without chillies) to cook anything coz it's salty and you need only a little each time so it'll take a long time to finish a jar. I would gladly eat your first batch of chicken even if there's too little marinade coz I spotted that you included some onions in that one...hee..hee! ^_~

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have an unopened jar of regular bean paste in my pantry and I bought it to cook some dishes that my mum used to cook when I was growing up. Ah, yes, the first batch had onions because there were leftover onions from another dish. So I just threw them in together with the marinade. No waste!

      Delete
  9. Your toban djan roasted chicken looks so meaty and so full of goodness. I am hungry now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hee..hee... It was good but must put more honey so that it taste nicer.

      Delete
  10. Soy sauce is still needed as the bean paste is originally quite salty?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You can leave it out, will still taste OK.

      Delete
  11. Just tried out your recipe tonight! Excellent dish! Definitely a recipe for keeps. Thanks for sharing. I omitted the soya sauce, by the way.

    ReplyDelete