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Sesame Oil Chicken

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Sesame Oil Chicken - the most aromatic and delicious braised chicken ever, with loads of sesame oil and ginger. A homey dinner in 20 mins.

Sesame Oil Chicken (麻油鸡) recipe - This a really homey and humble chicken dish that is both delicious and easy to make. It takes only a few ingredients, and the great taste complements steamed white rice. | rasamalaysia.com

Easy and delicious braised sesame oil chicken in a bowl.

If there is a chicken recipe that I constantly make at home, it would be this sesame oil chicken recipe.

Sesame oil chicken or 麻油鸡.

Easy and quick Chinese braised chicken made with sesame oil and ginger.

I make it at least once every few weeks, with lots of ginger and sesame oil.

It’s a homey dish that everyone enjoys.

Easy homemade Asian sesame oil chicken with a pair of chopsticks.

In Malaysia, sesame oil chicken or pork is often served to new mothers, during the confinement month after childbirth.

Chinese people believe that ginger and sesame oil are heaty ingredients that help strengthen and nourish the body of new mothers and will speed up recovery after childbirth.

This chicken is so delicious and takes only a few ingredients: ginger, sesame oil, chicken and soy sauce. Stew and braise the chicken, preferably in Chinese clay pot, and you will have the most amazing, aromatic, tender and utterly mouthwatering chicken for steamed rice.

Close up photo of easy and delicious sesame oil chicken.

The best thing about it is that it takes only 20 minutes to make.

Try it for dinner tonight, I will guarantee you that you will make it a dinner staple!

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Sesame Oil Chicken Recipe

Sesame Oil Chicken (麻油鸡) recipe - This a really homey and humble chicken dish that is both delicious and easy to make. It takes only a few ingredients, and the great taste complements steamed white rice. | rasamalaysia.com

Course Main Course
Cuisine Chinese
Keyword Sesame Oil Chicken
Author

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 2-3 inches knob of ginger peeled and cut into thin strips
  • 12 oz chicken cut into pieces
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or Chinese rice wine
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3 dashes grounddashes ground white pepper
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Instructions

  1. Heat up a skillet or wok over high heat and add the sesame oil. When the oil is fully heated, add the ginger strips and stir fry until light brown or aromatic. Add the chicken and stir fry for about 10-15 seconds before adding the soy sauce, wine, and ground white pepper. Add the water and do a few quick stirs. Cover the skillet or wok with the lid and turn the heat to low heat and let the chicken cook for about 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens and the meat becomes tender. Dish out and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

If the sauce dries up, add more water and cook until the chicken becomes tender. You may use bone-in chicken legs or thighs to make this dish. Just chop the chicken to pieces.

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104 COMMENTS... read them below or add one

  5. This is one of my fav dishes. I use drumsticks, too. I add alot of ginger in mine … love the smell and heat! Hmmm…I think it’s time to make this again!!! Yummy!

    Reply

  6. I would like to try this but I’m confused about sesame oil.
    Does this use the toasted sesame oil? I recently moved to Koreatown and have shopped at the various markets but am unable to tell the difference between the toasted and not toasted.
    Can you shed some light? ( I know I should ask someone in these stores but haven’t ) Any recommendations on specific brands?

    Reply

  7. Thank you for this recipe! I have fond memories of “mua yiew kwey” that’s how we call it in Manila (we speak hokkien). my mom made it all the time and I completely forgot about this.

    More power to you! My husband thinks I am a good cook – in truth, I just copy most of your recipes!!
    If you are in Dubai, please, let me know, it would mean the world to me to have yum cha with you :)

    Reply

    • Yes, we call it mua yu kay, sounds about the same! I love this, my late mom used to make this quite a bit but with pork, and fried eggs in the sauce! I loved it so much!

      Glad to know you love my recipes! Hopefully I will get to Dubai one day!

      Reply

  9. This looks just like how my grandma makes it. She sometimes uses leftover cooked chicken to make this. You make it look so simple! And i agree – sambal makes everything better!

    Reply

  11. I also fall to Kadoya Sesame Oil when in the US. This is also one homey dish I enjoy very much. Shall make this soon….you must eat more of this! :P just so good!

    Reply

      • I agree with bee here. Although San bei ji is a delicious (as a taiwanese friend said it in mandarin) is a delicious dish. This recipe uses fewer ingredients, but personally I prefer the sweetened mix of succulent chicken, chili, basil and saltiness in San Bei Ji more.

        Couldn’t manage to get sambal balacan, but made it with a homemade sambal ulek instead. Also turned out great.

        Reply

  15. hi, i made this last night and omg it was yum! i just used chicken thighs without the bones instead cos i have a lazy family haha!

    Reply

    • Jun – that’s so great that you tried the recipe. It’s so easy and delicious, right? I love this recipe. Can eat all of them by myself. Boneless meat works fine, too. But I like chicken drumsticks for this specific recipe. :)

      Reply

      • It just makes me think of home (Singapore). I remember my aunt eating this and ginger fish during her confinement period :D Thanks so much again.

        Reply

  18. OMG this is HOME dish!! The first dish I learned from my grandma when I was only 14, just because it’s my favourite. My dad, thinking I know how to cook by then because of sesame chicken, told me to fry a plate of veg and I failed miserable.

    Reply

  20. I’m making this recipe, but I don’t have Chinese Rice Wine. Are there alternatives that are more common that I can use?

    Reply

  21. Really enjoy this dish – the bone in chicken I think adds to the flavour. One tip though …. when cutting up a chicken drumstick the bones can shatter however, cutting when it’s still partially frozen should help.

    Reply

  22. I’m going to make this with boneless chicken, would you recommend that I use the “baking soda trick” for the chicken?

    Reply

  23. Whenever I cut up and cook a whole chicken, my daughter reserves the drumsticks and thigh parts while my eldest son goes for the chicken breast.

    I only get to eat what’s left – the bony parts and the chicken backside. Sigh! But I love those parts especially in curry or KFC.

    Reply

  24. I’m so making this tonight. However, my Mat Salleh hubs is not a fan of picking bones, so I’m afraid it’ll have to be made with boneless thighs.

    I shall demand for this dish everyday during my confinement period come spring. Bones and all.

    Reply

  25. I can only get roasted sesame oil in Cairo. The one you would top soups before eating them. So won’t this oil burn if heated on high heat?

    Great blog. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

  27. I’m staying in Kuwait and want to try this dish as it’s so mouth watering. But I can’t get the shoaling wine or rice wine over here…can I substitute these ingredients? Thanks…

    Reply

  28. I’ve tried this recipe a few times. It tastes just like the way my grandma used to cook it. Simply delicious! Thks for sharing this recipe. I’ll be posting it on my blog soon. :D

    Reply

  32. Hi,

    I love you site and already tried the chicken cashew nut which tasted just like in our favorite Chinese restaurant.

    We also have another favorite called Sesame chicken but it looks different than this one here. We could never figure out what the sauce is made of. My guess is oyster sauce, honey and soy sauce but I was wondering if you can help me. They usually sprinkle sesame on top of it.

    Thank you!

    Reply

  33. when i cook sesame oil chicken, i would take out the ginger after i fried it and then add to the chicken just before serving. to me the chicken taste better that way, anyway diff people have different taste. can try if you wish to have a different taste.

    Reply

  35. I have been using this recipe as a good starter, with a few minor tweaks. Instead of oyster sauce, I drizzle a little kecap manis because my kids like a touch of sweetness. I also use Kadoya toasted sesame oil for a richer sesame taste. Thanks for sharing this recipe!

    Reply

  37. looks yummy. i’m into chinese these days. for muslims what can you suggest as the closest substitute to the wine? i can take rice wine vinegar though but not sure about the taste.

    Reply

  38. It looks great, but I have one question. Do you use sweet soysauce or salty? because im sure that would make a difference.

    Reply

  41. Cooked the sesame oil chicken following your recipe for dinner, it was very delicious. We had to fight for the last few pieces. Thumbs up!!!
    Going to try more of your recipes.

    Reply

  42. Wow, this sounds delicious, I would like to try it! what do you mean by chicken drumsticks (chop into 3-4 pieces each, bone-in). Do you actually mean to chop the drumsticks? how?
    BTW, I have your book and enjoy choosing a recipe every weekend :-D

    Reply

  46. Can you please state whether light or dark soya sauce when it has to be used. There is also Ketchup manis. Thanks

    Reply

  51. I cooked the sesame oil chicken in the claypot. It turns well and tasty. One question : how to make the gravy stronger taste? Can anyone help ? Thank you.

    Reply

  52. we made this dish twice now and the sauce is always too watery. it tastes great, but do you have a suggestion to fix this? we even doubled the recipe, but used less water and still too watery. i thought about adding cornstarch to help it congeal, but that seems wrong. lol. HELP!

    btw, great site. great recipes ?

    Reply

    • Hi Candace, if it’s too watery, it means you haven’t cooked it long enough. Lower your heat and simmer until the sauce reduces and the chicken is more tender. You will love it even more. Thanks for following my site! :)

      Reply

  54. Thank you Rasa Malaysia for this wonderful recipe. It tastes (and smells) very authentic and brings me back to the fond memories of my childhood days instantaneously! Terima kasih!!!

    Reply

  55. You Sesame Oil Chicken look yummy!!

    May I know what soy sauce are you using? Light or dark soy sauce? Can I use Hua Tiao Jiu?

    Reply

  56. Your Sesame Oil Chicken looks yummy!!!

    May I know what soy sauce did you use? Light soy sauce or dark soy sauce? Can I use hua tiao jiu?

    Thanks.

    Reply

  57. I recently found your blog and I’m loving it. This was delicious! I’ve made it a few times and tweaked the recipe a bit to suit our tastes. Forgive me if it’s Malaysian cooking sacrilege. I use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce because we are gluten free. I used homemade chicken broth instead of water. And finally when I sauté the chicken I give it a generous sprinkling of sweet rice flour. This helps the sauce to be thicker a bit more quickly. When I am planning ahead I will marinate the chicken in the ginger and rice wine for 24 hours and I think this adds a lovely depth of flavor, but it’s not necessary. This is a quick and easy recipe, but delicious enough for company. When I served this to guests the men went back for thirds!

    Reply

  59. I made this tonight using sliced thigh fillets and it was delicious. I added a TBS of oyster sauce (which I read in the comments section) and thickened with cornflour at the end. It was maybe a tad too salty with the added oyster sauce, so next time I reduce the soy sauce a bit. So simple and so tasty. Thanks for the great recipe.

    Reply

  60. First time cooking this for dinner and the taste is almost the same as my auntie’s :D
    She used to cook sesame oil pork when I was in sec sch :) Best with rice!

    Reply

  62. I tried this recipe and my whole family loved it! Thank you! I will definitely be cooking this more often! ?

    Reply

  66. Just wondering if you’re aware that this recipe is linked from another site?
    I followed a recipe on Pintrest, which took me to yummly.com, I clicked “read directions” and it brought me to this site, with a different recipe to what is on the yummly site, very very confusing I must say.

    Reply

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