It will work or you can substitute with some liquid smoke.. my sister tried it by accident as she was setting it up and pour the wrong bottle.

Just experiment!! Good Luck!

Hmmm.... I have some squid rings in my freezer right now and 5-spice powder in my spice cabinet. We're "doing" an antique show this weekend and I'll bet cold squid Cantonese Style would make a much better picnic lunch with a bean sprout based salad, than typical arena type food! Going shopping this afternoon and I'm adding rice wine and broad bean paste to my list. Or do you think Thai green curry paste might work?

Thanks for sharing this recipe - I'm looking forward to using it for chicken and beef as well.

I wonder if this will work for drumsticks as well. The recipe looks great, but on my budget the legs are more affordable.

Why not? Just poach 'em a minute or two longer than wings or "drumettes". I really think this will work for anything!

I envision another 30 centuries of history for this recipe and I feel really privileged at being allowed to share in it!!!! Thank you

Squid is a hard item to cook unless you have dealt with it before. It might be Chewy. So let it cook a little longer.

Personally, I like Broad Bean Paste.. but try with Thai Green Curry if you can stand the heat and let me know.

Drumsticks work well, I only buy my wings on sale and if its not, I will put any chicken parts in. I have done drumsticks, drummetts, Thighs (Large Pack at Cost with Bone in is Super Cheap)

Make sure the sauce covers the meat and let it sit without opening the lid to peek.

I have also done a whole chicken but I change the procedure slightly since there is no way you would have enough sauce for the whole chicken; (This is the same procedure for Soy Sauce Chicken)

Bring the Master Sauce to boil with the chicken; make sure there is no baggies of guts inside (I didn't know the first time I did it and I wondered why this baggie was inside my chicken);
Turn It Off and let it sit for 30 minutes (do not open lid)
Open the lid and Flip your chicken so the part that is in the liquid is now on top;
Bring the Master Sauce to Boil again; Turn off and do not open the lid for 30 minutes;

By this time, your chicken should be 80% done;

Open the lid, and bath your chicken by scouping sauce over the body on low heat;

Poke a chopstick to the thickest part and if clear juice comes out, its done. If no juice comes out, you have over cooked it and the meat might be tough.

The Beef I mentioned is Beef Shank - Chinese Butcher sells you the whole shank minus the bone; western butcher usually give you a cross cut with the bone; it has little fat and ligiments attached to it. I cooked the whole shank (looks like a little calf muscle), then after its cooled; I slice it in very thin slices and make lettuce rolls with it, or eat by itself as a cold cut. It stores well in the freezer as a whole piece until you are ready to prep it for the week so you can do a whole batch of 4 -5 shanks.

I have cooked squid before but only breaded and deep-fried before I came back to low carbing. I had actually thought I might try just a couple of rings at 2 minutes poaching and 5 to just sit in the sauce, then if they're tough 2 more at 1 minute. I remember reading years ago that if your squid gets tough from overcooking, you can rescue it by simmering for a couple of hours - I hope I won't have to do that!!!

I couldn't find broad bean paste at my local market - will have a look for it next time I'm in Chinatown - in the meantime, I'll go with just a wee tad of curry paste. Yes, I'll let you know how they turn out!

Glenda

Well, you were bang on at 5 minutes poaching and 5 minutes sitting for the squid - it's tender and wonderfully tasty. I just hope we can resist them tonite 'cause we really need them for our lunch and/or dinner tomorrow at the antique show. I also did some chicken wings - they're cooling now so I haven't actually sampled them yet. I bought the "skin on" wings so I'm tempted to put them under the broiler for a few minutes to crisp the skin - or maybe it's not necessary.

Glenda

Alton Brown did an entire show dedicated to squid. He said either cook it short and fast, or long and slow. Anything in between would end up rubbery.

You might look on food network's sight, or a bulletin board devoted to Good Eats and see if he had any more squid tips from the show if you want to go for recipe variety using calamari.

I am glad the squid is not too chewy for you.

I sometimes broil the skin for the crispness. And it just peels right off and crunchy.. the meat will stay moist.

The funnest part of this thread is how the great-grandmother's recipe eventually ended up at '30 centuries' --er, that would be nearly 1000 B.C.

I have some good 5-spice powder and I've never known what to do with it. I'm gluten sensitive which means I try to avoid soy sauce. Even the 5-spice bag with its little ingredients and recipe, has a mix that uses soy sauce.

Is it possible to use 5-spice without soy sauce in any recipe and still have it taste ok? I know THIS recipe needs the soy obviously. I mean 5-spice in general. Every recipe I find for it includes soy, sigh!

PJ

PJ - both Tamari and Braggs make a wheat-free soy sauce. I use the Braggs all the time and find it very good. Braggs is considerably less expensive than the Tamari but the Tamari is unquestionably better tasting!
Glenda

Where can I find dark soy sauce?

Just let me clarify, 30 generations is not that long, it came out of the family recipe book. Back in the day, you can be a grandma by 30.

I am glad everyone's recipe worked out.

5 spice can be used without the soy sauce if you can find the substitute.

You can find it at most Asian Grocery Store or larger super markets. Lee Kum Kee is the brand I use.