Chinese Five Spice Chicken
This low effort, big flavour Chinese Five Spice Chicken is perfect for summer weeknight dinners (or any time of year!) No cooking over a hot stove here. Paired with fluffy rice and a herbaceous cucumber, orange and ginger salad, this dish ticks all the fresh and light boxes.
Chinese Five Spice Chicken
Chinese Five Spice Chicken
Chinese Five Spice Chicken
I don’t know about you, but I get bored pretty easily with the same old meals, so much so that my quest for new dinner recipes is an ‘always-on’ setting, and I love it. This recipe was inspired by vernabanana.com. Full credit for the chicken roasting ingredients goes to her, I have respectfully adapted it.
This oven-baked Chinese Five Spice chicken thighs recipe is super versatile. Sub out the rice and have it as a fresh and light chicken salad, it makes a pretty great work lunch. Or pack it into some bao buns and top with a little kewpie mayo for something different.
Here’s what you need to know about Chinese Five Spice Chicken
- It’s perfect for weeknights when energy levels are flatlining
- Makes a fantastic meal prep lunch situation
- Perfect for summer, there’s no frying involved
- The salad is a knockout and you can find a recipe for it alone here
- It’s on the table in about an hour
Cooking tips
- If you’re cooking a double batch I recommend cooking a little longer, the juices don’t caramelise as quickly.
- Make sure to remove the foil for the third baking round or the sauce won't thicken.
More Weeknight dinners to get excited about
If you have space, store the rice, chicken and salad in separate containers. But combining the chicken and rice is also fine. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days (for salad freshness).
Ingredients and substitutions
How to make it - step by step!
Preheat the oven to 200C. Add olive oil, hoisin, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, honey, Chinese five spice, garlic and ginger to a roasting tray. Mix to combine.
Add the chicken thighs, thoroughly coat all over, then cover the tray with foil. Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove the foil, flip the chicken over, cover again and bake for 20 minutes.
Flip each chicken piece over again, leave the foil off and bake uncovered for another 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the rice to packet instructions.
Slice your cucumber into chunks. Cut the skin off your orange then slice into segments.
To make the dressing, add ginger, rice wine vinegar, soy, caster sugar to a dish, mix through.
Add the cucumber, orange, mint, coriander, pour over dressing and sesame seeds, toss through. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.
Remove chicken from the oven, Slice into strips. Place back in the sauce and coat the chicken with the sauce (or toss through).
Serve the rice and salad into bowls, drizzle over residual dressing on the salad and the rice. Serve the chicken into the bowls, drizzling a tiny bit of honey over the chicken.
Preheat the oven to 200C. Add olive oil, hoisin, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, honey, Chinese five spice, garlic and ginger to a roasting tray. Mix to combine.
Add the chicken thighs, thoroughly coat all over, then cover the tray with foil. Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove the foil, flip the chicken over, cover again and bake for 20 minutes.
Flip each chicken piece over again, leave the foil off and bake uncovered for another 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the rice to packet instructions.
Slice your cucumber into chunks. Cut the skin off your orange then slice into segments.
To make the dressing, add ginger, rice wine vinegar, soy, caster sugar to a dish, mix through.
Add the cucumber, orange, mint, coriander, pour over dressing and sesame seeds, toss through. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.
Remove chicken from the oven, Slice into strips. Place back in the sauce and coat the chicken with the sauce (or toss through).
Serve the rice and salad into bowls, drizzle over residual dressing on the salad and the rice. Serve the chicken into the bowls, drizzling a tiny bit of honey over the chicken.
Watch the how to video
Watch the how to video
Chinese Five Spice Chicken
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp ginger
- 1kg chicken thighs
- 1.5 cups Jasmine rice
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 1.5 tsp ginger
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- ½ tsp soy sauce
- 2 Lebanese cucumbers
- 1 large orange
- 1/3 cup coriander
- 1/3 cup mint
- 1 tsp black sesame seeds
- Preheat the oven to 200C. Add olive oil, hoisin, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, honey, Chinese five spice, garlic and ginger to a roasting tray. Mix to combine.
- Add the chicken thighs, thoroughly coat all over, then cover the tray with foil. Bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the foil, flip the chicken over, cover again and bake for 20 minutes.
- Flip each chicken piece over again, leave the foil off and bake uncovered for another 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook the rice to packet instructions.
- Slice your cucumber into chunks. Cut the skin off your orange then slice into segments.
- To make the dressing, add ginger, rice wine vinegar, soy, caster sugar to a dish, mix through.
- Add the cucumber, orange, mint, coriander, pour over dressing and sesame seeds, toss through. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Remove chicken from the oven, Slice into strips. Place back in the sauce and coat the chicken with the sauce (or toss through).
- Serve the rice and salad into bowls, drizzle over residual dressing on the salad and the rice. Serve the chicken into the bowls, drizzling a tiny bit of honey over the chicken.