Steaming a chicken is an ideal and healthy cooking style that preserves the tenderness and taste. It also leaves you satisfied and utilizes economical procedures. A lot of people today use electric steamers but if you don’t want to invest much, you could do with a traditional rack that fits in a saucepan.

There are three methods that you can choose from:

  1. Steaming a Whole chicken: Stuff the whole chicken with seasonings (such as garlic sauce, ginger, etc.), and leave it alone for thirty minutes. Leave the skin on and place the chicken in a steamer. Steam it for about 20 minutes. Do not remove the chicken immediately from the steamer. Rather, you would want to leave it in for another 15 minutes so that the juice* penetrates through and is absorbed.
  2. Steaming chopped pieces (with bone on): Using a cleaver chop the whole chicken into bite size pieces, leaving the skin and all bones intact. Marinate with your choice of seasoning and leave it sit for 15 to 30 minutes. Place the pieces in a steamer and steam it for 30 minutes. Do not remove the chicken out immediately from the steamer. Rather, you would want to leave it in for another 5 minutes so that the juice* penetrates through and is absorbed by the chicken.
  3. Steaming boneless pieces: Using a cleaver, de-bone the whole chicken. Set the bone and skin aside for stock preparation, and cut the meat into bite size pieces. Marinate with your choice of seasonings and leave it for 15-30 minutes. Place the pieces in steamer for 20 minutes. Do not remove the chicken out immediately from the steamer. Rather, you would want to leave it in for another 5 minutes so that the juice* penetrates through and is absorbed.

* The Juice left out in the plate can be used as gravy or poured over the dish to give it an added appeal.

Making little cuts through each piece will allow the juices to penetrate through, making your dish even tastier. Also, do not remove the lid off the steamer during the cooking process. Doing this would prolong the cooking time.