Chestnut Chicken Soup

Steps

▶ Tap a timecode to jump to roughly that moment in the video.

1. 1
   Prepare the barley: soak about 30g of job's tears barley in water (or in hot water for 20 minutes if pressed for time). Drain and scrub with salt to remove any off-flavors, then rinse thoroughly. Place the barley in a shallow bowl with water covering it, and add to the rice cooker with half a cup of water in the outer pot. When the cooker switches off, let it rest for 20 minutes before removing, ensuring the barley is fully softened.
   ▶ ≈0:49
2. 2
   Prepare the chicken: add cold water to a pot and add the boneless chicken meat, then heat. Do not let it boil—turn off the heat as soon as bubbles appear and the blood releases. Wait a moment, then scoop out the chicken and rinse it with hot water to remove impurities and any residual blood.
   ▶ ≈2:11
3. 3
   In a 10-serving rice cooker inner pot, combine the pre-softened barley, blanched chicken, 15 chestnuts, 15 dried mushrooms, and 15g of ginger slices. Add 1000ml water (about half the inner pot plus a bit more), 2 teaspoons of salt, and 2 tablespoons of rice wine. Pour 1 cup of water into the outer pot, press the rice cooker switch, and cook until it switches off.
   ▶ ≈3:17
4. 4
   After the rice cooker switches off, let it rest for 20 minutes before opening the lid. Transfer the finished soup to the stovetop over medium heat and taste it. If it needs more salt, add about 1.5 teaspoons more to adjust. If there is excess fat on the surface, skim it off while the soup is heating. Finally, add about 0.5 teaspoon of MSG to enhance the flavor, then serve.
   ▶ ≈4:35