Star Anise and Ginger Braised Chicken

Star anise is used to give a licorice flavour to this succulent, aromatic braised chicken, ready in under an hour. If you don’t have it, use 1 teaspoon of anise seeds instead. You can prepare it with any cut of chicken, although I always prefer bone-in, skin-on chicken legs. Serve with a light cucumber salad, steamed rice or bao if desired. It makes for a delicious midweek meal everyone will rave about.

4 Whole chicken legs
Sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
1 tbsp Peanut oil
1 tbsp Sesame oil
2 Onions, thinly sliced
2 inch Fresh ginger, peeled and cut into thin strips
4 Garlic cloves , sliced
2 Star anise
1 tbsp Honey or brown sugar
4 tbsp Gluten free soya sauce
2 tbsp Each Chinese Shaoxing wine and rice vinegar
1 Long red chilli, thinly sliced (plus extra to garnish)
120 ml Chicken stock or water
1 tbsp Chopped cilantro or scallion, to garnish

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F. Season the chicken legs with salt and pepper.
Heat the oils in a large ovenproof pan and add the chicken, skin-side down. Cook until the skin is deeply golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
Add the onions, garlic, star anise and ginger and cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes.
Add the honey, soya sauce, Shaoxing wine, vinegar, chilli and the chicken stock. Bring to a boil then place the chicken back in the pan, skin-side up, and spoon over some of the sauce.
Place in the oven and braise for 40 minutes, basting occasionally until the chicken is fully cooked. Remove and garnish with chopped cilantro or scallion and extra chilli.

8 comments:

David M. Gascoigne, 27/6/25 12:13: I haven’t’t use star anise in years. Time to do it again!
Linda's Relaxing Lair 27/6/25 12:26: This looks scrumptious.
Tom 27/6/25 12:49: ...Angie, you make chicken look fabulous.
ellie 27/6/25 12:52: We might call this Firecracker chicken..here in the states. Awesome!
Caitlin'nMegan 27/6/25 12:53: Looks like an awesome summertime meal! Spicy!
DEZMOND 27/6/25 13:05: I was just wondering, wow, Angie has not made any chicken in decades LOOOL I envy your fresh weather, it was 40C yesterday here, I thought I would die because it did not drop below 28C at night either.
eileeninmd 27/6/25 14:27: Hello Angie,
Looks like another delicious chicken recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Have a great day and a happy weekend.
Summer 2025 Car Rental Deals in Germany – Compare Prices at Nanajee.co 27/6/25 15:17: Yum! This braised chicken sounds like a flavor explosion! 🌟🍗 Love how adaptable it is—star anise for that deep licorice kick or an easy swap with anise seeds. Bone-in, skin-on legs? *Chef’s kiss* for maximum juiciness! 💋 And pairing it with cool cucumber salad or fluffy bao? **Genius.** Already dreaming of this as my next weeknight hero meal. 😍 Thanks for the delicious inspo—can’t wait to try it! 👩🍳✨