Kitchen / Chinese
Salt-Baked Chicken
Cantonese-style salt-baked seasoning chicken, adapted for an oven and foil rather than a full hot-salt burial.
Ingredients
Per whole chicken.
- 1 whole chicken, roughly 3 lb
- 3-4 tbsp salt-baked chicken seasoning powder
- Sliced ginger
- Heavy foil
Method
Day before
- Pat the chicken thoroughly dry.
- Rub seasoning over the skin and inside the cavity.
- Place ginger in the cavity.
- Wrap tightly in three layers of heavy foil.
- Refrigerate overnight.
Day of
- Heat oven to 375 F.
- Bake 85-90 minutes.
- Rest wrapped for 20 minutes.
- Hold at 200 F if needed.
- Chop immediately before serving.
Scaling
The Lunar New Year plan originally used three chickens for 20 guests. A later pass considered two chickens for closer to 15 guests, because the clay for a full salt burial was more expensive per pound than the chicken itself. The foil-and-seasoning method avoids making clay a required consumable.
Decisions
- Foil method retained: practical, inexpensive, and compatible with a crowded banquet oven.
- Full clay enclosure rejected for routine use: excessive material cost with no clear benefit for this event.
- Do not unwrap early: the sealed rest preserves moisture and aroma.