Name: Concubine's Chicken
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients: 10 ounces (280 g) boneless chicken thighs; 1⁄4 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon Shaoxing cooking wine, divided; 1⁄4 teaspoon cornstarch; 1⁄2 teaspoon white pepper powder, divided; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 1 dried red chile pepper (I use Tianjin chiles), soaked for 1 minute in warm water; 2 star anise pods; 1⁄2 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns; 2 teaspoons Pixian bean sauce; 1 green onion, trimmed and cut into (2-inch / 5 cm) segments, plus 2 green onions trimmed and finely chopped; 1 (1-inch / 2.5 cm) piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced; 1⁄2 longhorn pepper (or another thin, fresh, moderately hot chile pepper), sliced; 1⁄2 red bell pepper, cubed; 1⁄2 teaspoon soy sauce; 1⁄2 yellow potato, peeled and cubed; 1⁄8 teaspoon sugar; 2 large garlic cloves, peeled and sliced; 1 recipe Longevity Noodles; ½ cup (100 g) cabbage or bok choy, roughly chopped into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces; 1⁄2 red onion, chopped; 2 teaspoons chopped Chinese chives; 2 tablespoons chopped celery; ¼ cup XFF Noodle Sauce; Homemade or store-bought chili oil

Photo of Concubine Chicken with Longevity Noodles.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Lillian Chou

Back in the Tang dynasty, there was a famous voluptuous concubine named Yang Guifei 杨贵妃. She was considered one of the great beauties of ancient China, and her influence over the emperor in Chang-an (ancient Xi’an) brought music, art, dance, and food to the forefront of high culture. Bonus: She was from the nearby Shanxi province. We named this dish after her not just because she was from our region, but also because she was a little hedonistic, a woman who knew what she liked and ate what she wanted. We like to think she would’ve loved this dish of juicy dark-meat chicken, with every flavor you could possible crave: sweet, sour, and just a little spicy. A perfectly hedonistic meal.

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Recipe notes

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Recipe notes

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