Tea Smoked Chicken

Total Time: 1 hr 55 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon szechuan peppercorns
• 4 lbs chicken
• 1/3 cup black tea leaves
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• sesame oil, for finishing

Recipe

• 1 toast the salt and peppercorns together in a skillet over a low flame until it starts to smoke.
• 2 let cool and grind in a mortar and pestle.
• 3 rub the mixture all over the chicken, inside and out.
• 4 refrigerate overnight.
• 5 steam the chicken in a large pot for about 45 minutes, until juices run clear when thigh is pricked. i use one of those collapsible steamer inserts in a soup pot. do save the resulting broth, it's quite flavorful.
• 6 line a wok and its lid with heavy-duty foil.
• 7 combine the tea and sugar in the bottom of the wok and place a rack over the mixture.
• 8 heat the wok until the mixture begins to smoke.
• 9 pat the chicken dry and place on the rack.
• 10 cover the wok tightly and smoke the chicken for about 15 minutes.
• 11 remove from the heat and let the covered wok stand for another 30 minutes.
• 12 cut the chicken into serving pieces and brush with the sesame oil.