Yongping Big Chunk Chicken

Yongping Big Chunk Chicken

　　Yongping Big Chunk Chicken, renowned for its unique flavor and way of eating, has gained increasing fame in recent years, becoming another local delicacy following the popularity of Braised Chicken.

　　Yongping Big Chunk Chicken, as the name suggests, features both large-sized chickens and generously sized meat chunks. It uses authentic free-range chicken as the main ingredient, and the selected chickens must be fully grown, appearing big and sturdy. After slaughtering and cleaning, the chicken is disassembled. The disassembled parts include intact heads, wings, thighs, and feet, while the body is chopped into large chunks — about five times the size of those produced by conventional chopping methods. Yongping Big Chunk Chicken originates from the horse caravan food culture along the ancient Bonan Road. In those days, horse drivers would chop the meat into chunks larger than the mouth of a teacup, and each chicken was divided into just 18 pieces. This made it very convenient to eat without needing to use chopsticks much — you could simply use your hands.

　　Once the chicken is roughly chopped, place the pot over a fierce flame, pour in pure vegetable oil, and add a handful of uncut whole dried chili peppers along with salt. Then add the chopped chicken pieces, along with seasonings such as tsao-ko and ginger, and stir-fry until all the moisture is fried out. Only then do you add sweet and pure mountain spring water to bring it to a boil. After cooking for a certain period, add a small amount of monosodium glutamate, then immediately remove it from the heat and serve. When eating, the soup and meat are served separately: the chicken soup is drunk on its own, and the chicken is dipped in sauce. Its flavor is richly aromatic and delicious, with neither the soup nor the meat feeling greasy. It doesn’t cause internal heat after consumption, is highly nutritious, and good for health — which is why it is favored by diners from all over.

　　Source: Dali Prefecture Tourism Development Management Committee