Yunnan steam pot chicken

Yunnan steam-pot chicken is cooked in a special earthenware vessel with a central steam opening. A Yunnan food account describes chicken cooked in this pot with ginger and mushrooms. The vessel is set above a lower pot of water: steam rises through its opening and condenses around the chicken, contributing to the broth that collects inside.^[1][2]

The pot and the steaming method remain central while additions vary. Yunnan Net’s 2021 report on a Kunming cooking event describes a preparation with ginger and salt and records chef Wang Fei’s gastrodia-and-chicken version from a Zhaotong cooking tradition. Gastrodia is an added plant ingredient in that named preparation, while mushrooms appear in the other account. Neither addition is presented as necessary for every pot of the dish.^[2][1]