Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken

Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken

Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken is a protected geographical indication product.

Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken is a certified geographical indication trademark.

　　Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken is produced in the Xinghua and Yulao areas of Fengkai County, Zhaoqing City. Local farmers raise the chickens under bamboo groves by streams or beneath pine trees on hillsides, often feeding them wild grasses, insects, and ants. As a result, it has three major characteristics: two slendernesses, three yellows, and two shortnesses—that is, slender head and bones; yellow beak, feathers, and feet; and a short body and neck.

　　The muscles of the Apricot Blossom Chicken are plump, and its fat is evenly distributed. Whether served steamed or served white-cut (boiled), it is equally tender, smooth, and sweet, with white-cut being especially prized. Fengkai white-cut chicken is prepared by boiling the cleaned chicken in water kept at around 90°C until just cooked. This gives the skin a golden-yellow, glossy appearance and a taste that is clean, fresh, sweet, refreshing, and aromatic with a hint of bone. The market price is about 20 yuan per jin. (Zhaoqing)

　　Known as the “Famous Chicken of China,” the Apricot Blossom Chicken is one of Guangdong Province’s three renowned chicken breeds and is a famous specialty brand of Fengkai—the Golden Phoenix brand—produced in Xinghua Town, Fengkai County. Its external features are “three yellows” (yellow feathers, yellow beak, yellow feet), “three shortnesses” (short neck, short body, short feet), and “two slendernesses” (slender head, slender limbs); its body shape is small, compact, and proportionate; its physique is characterized by fine bones, thin skin, and delicate muscle fibers, known for crispy skin, smooth meat, and delicious flavor; and its nutritional content (due to superior breed, breeding environment, and feed) exceeds that of other chicken varieties.

　　Apricot Blossom Chicken can be prepared into various delicious dishes using methods such as white-cut, soy sauce-marinated, salt-baked, shredded, roasted, braised, stir-fried, steamed, stewed, or simmered. It can also be featured in a whole-chicken banquet, among which the “white-cut chicken” best showcases the breed’s uniquely tender and smooth flavor.

　　History of the Apricot Blossom Chicken

　　Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken gets its name from its origin in Xinghua Commune, Fengkai County, Guangdong Province. Historical records indicate that the breed has over 1,000 years of farming history. As early as the Qing Dynasty, it was offered as a tribute to the imperial court. Fengkai, part of the ancient Lingnan region, is said to have been where Mo Xuexin, the top scholar of the Tang Dynasty, brought the local specialty, Apricot Blossom Chicken, to the capital for the emperor and ministers to enjoy. Due to its exceptional taste, the emperor was delighted, making the chicken a must-have for banquets, hence the saying “No feast is complete without chicken.” The breed is mainly distributed within Fengkai County. In the 1980s, annual production exceeded 1 million. It matures early, easily becomes plump, and has well-distributed subcutaneous and intermuscular fat, thin bones, and tender muscle fibers, classifying it as a high-quality small-sized meat chicken. Approved by the National Breed Compilation Committee, it is listed in the Chinese Poultry Breeds Register, ranking first among Guangdong’s three famous chicken breeds.

　　Main Characteristics, Origin, and Distribution of the Apricot Blossom Chicken

　　Named after its main production area—Xinghua in Fengkai County, Guangdong Province (renamed Xinghua Township after the founding of the People’s Republic), and locally called “rice chick,” it matures early, easily becomes plump, has evenly distributed subcutaneous and intermuscular fat, thin bones, and tender muscle fibers. It is a high-quality small-sized meat chicken and one of China’s more valuable live chicken exports. Primarily distributed in Fengkai County, Guangdong Province, annual production exceeds 1 million. Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken has plump muscles and evenly distributed fat, whether served white-cut or steamed, both resulting in tender, smooth, and sweet meat, with white-cut being especially excellent because the chicken is boiled in water maintained at around 90°C. This gives the skin a golden-yellow, shiny appearance and a taste that is clean, fresh, sweet, refreshing, and aromatic with a hint of bone. Originally from Xinghua, Yulao, and Liandu in Fengkai, besides its superior breed, the chicken benefits from being raised by local farmers under bamboo groves by streams or beneath pine trees on hillsides, often fed wild grasses and insects.

　　Formation of the Apricot Blossom Chicken Breed

　　Fengkai County is located in northwestern Guangdong Province, in a subtropical region. The Tropic of Cancer runs through the area. The terrain is hilly, with soil mostly sandy, and the unique volcanic mud of Xinghua Town is typical. In the late 1980s, a scene from the Hong Kong TV series Journey to the West—the episode “Sun Wukong Borrows the Banana Fan”—was filmed in Yonghe Village beside Provincial Highway S226 Shuigu Line in Xinghua Town, depicting the “Flaming Mountains.”

　　In addition to growing rice, corn, wheat, fava beans, peanuts, sweet potatoes, and cassava, farmers in Fengkai plant fruit trees on hillsides, near villages, and by streams, providing feed sources and ideal natural environments for free-range chicken farming. Because the Apricot Blossom Chicken has plump breast muscles, fine muscle fibers, thin skin, and well-distributed subcutaneous fat—making it highly suitable for white-cut chicken, yielding glossy, crisp skin (so-called “glass skin”)—it aligns with the preferences of people in Guangdong and Guangxi for delicious, original-flavor food and is also an excellent pairing with alcohol, making it very popular with consumers. As early as 1915, it was exported to Guangzhou and Hong Kong, selling at prices over 30% higher than ordinary chicken, which helped promote the selective breeding of high-quality meat-type Apricot Blossom Chicken. Xinghua Township, located in mountainous inland areas, had extremely inconvenient transportation before the founding of the People’s Republic, resulting in few introduced foreign chicken breeds. Furthermore, locals historically preferred raising “three-yellow” chickens (yellow beak, yellow feathers, yellow feet). Through long-term selective breeding, a stable and consistent high-quality local meat breed with uniform appearance characteristics and strong heritability was formed.

　　Meat Quality Characteristics and Performance of the Apricot Blossom Chicken

　　Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken has plump muscles and evenly distributed fat, whether served white-cut or steamed, both resulting in tender, smooth, and sweet meat, with white-cut being especially excellent because the chicken is boiled in water maintained at around 90°C. This gives the skin a golden-yellow, glossy appearance and a taste that is clean, fresh, sweet, refreshing, and aromatic with a hint of bone.

　　Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken is primarily free-range, foraging for natural feed throughout the day. Therefore, the chicken matures slowly in its early stages. Under formulated feed conditions, sexual maturity is reached at around 110 days. Measurements show that at 112 days, the average weight of roosters is 1256.1g, and hens average 1032.7g. Unlaying hens are typically raised to 5–6 months of age, reaching about 1000–1200g, and after 10–15 days of fattening, their weight can increase to 1150–1300g. The growth rate of feathers is relatively fast: chicks begin developing primary wing feathers at 3 days old, reaching 0.5–1.5cm, start growing tail feathers at 20 days, and all body feathers begin emerging at 40 days, fully grown by 60 days. Hens grow feathers faster than roosters by over 10 days. Carcass measurements at 112 days show that the half-eviscerated rate is 79.0% for roosters and 76.0% for hens, while the full-eviscerated rate is 74.7% for roosters and 70.0% for hens. Skin is mostly light yellow. Due to thin skin and subcutaneous fat, it is fine and smooth, coupled with evenly distributed intramuscular fat, resulting in superior meat quality, especially suitable for white-cut chicken. According to tests in 1983 by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine at South China Agricultural College and the Guangdong Poultry Science Research Institute, comparing the diameters of muscle fibers at different weeks using the same batch of chickens, the Apricot Blossom Chicken had finer muscle fiber diameters at all growth stages compared to the main commercial broiler in Hong Kong at the time, the “Shiqi Zha.”

　　Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken, named after its origin in Xinghua Town, Fengkai County, is one of Guangdong’s three famous chicken breeds, alongside Qingyuan Ma Chicken and Huiyang Beard Chicken.

　　First, it has locational specificity:

　　Fengkai is a national geopark with a favorable climate, high oxygen content in the air, iron-rich water, and mostly sandy soil. Local crops such as corn, peanuts, and cassava are abundant, offering unparalleled pollution-free feed sources and ideal natural free-range environments. Other regions in the province such as Yunfu, Foshan, and Guangzhou, as well as provinces outside Guangdong like Jiangsu and Beijing, have attempted to introduce and farm the breed, but the quality differs significantly from the original.

　　Second, it has distinctive external features:

　　Purebred Apricot Blossom Chickens are small, with characteristics summarized as “two slendernesses” (slender head and feet), “three yellows” (yellow beak, feathers, and feet), and “three shortnesses” (short neck, short body, short feet). Chicks mainly exhibit the “three yellows,” with roosters having large heads and upright combs. Hens have small heads, with black-speckled base feathers resembling a necklace of black pearls. Both roosters and hens have round toe scales, and the inner sides of their primary and secondary wing feathers are often black, with a few black tail feathers. Adult roosters weigh about 2.5 kg, and hens about 1.5 kg.

　　Third, it has superior quality:

　　The Apricot Blossom Chicken matures early, easily becomes plump, has evenly distributed subcutaneous and intermuscular fat, thin bones, and tender muscle fibers. Its carcass resembles a “shatian pomelo,” making it most suitable for white-cut chicken. The finished product has glossy, transparent skin that is crisp, fragrant, and delicious (also called “glass skin”), meeting the preference for delicious, original-flavor foods. It is an excellent pairing with alcohol and is highly favored by consumers.

　　Fourth, Evaluation and Outlook

　　The Apricot Blossom Chicken is one of the local breeds with exceptionally high meat quality. However, it has drawbacks such as low egg production, poor reproductive capacity, and slow early growth. To address this, our county’s agricultural and animal husbandry departments have invested heavily in its conservation and breeding, collaborating with the Guangdong Poultry Research Institute to develop the current commercial broiler generation. This maintains the Apricot Blossom Chicken’s appearance and flavor while improving production performance. Through joint efforts, the Fengkai Apricot Blossom Chicken has been registered under the “Golden Phoenix” brand, obtained national geographical trademark certification, achieved national pollution-free food certification in 2003, and was named a Guangdong Provincial Famous Product in 2006.