If you've eaten chicken feet, they've probably been the variety that you get at dim-sum, which are fried, marinated, and then stewed in their own marinade.
For myself, I am too lazy, and too unwilling to give up one of the best uses of chicken feet -- they make a phenomenally rich chicken stock!
To prepare chicken feet two ways, buy a pound to a pound and a half of chicken feet. If they have any trace of scaley yellow skin, remove it. With a small knife, remove the nails (easiest to remove the last joint of each toe).
For greatest flexibility, make a pure broth. In a large pot, cover the feet with about two quarts of water. Bring to a boil, and then simmer until the water is reduced by half -- 90 mins to 2 hours at a simmer.
By this time, the feet are bone-suckin' tender, as BBQ fans would say.
Remove the chicken to a smaller sauce pan.
Cover them with:
3/4 C sake
1/4 C mirin
2 stars of star anise
2T five spice powder
2T garlic
3 slices ginger
3T sugar
2T sriracha or chili-garlic paste
3T soy sauce
1T rice wine vinegar
Bring to boil and simmer until liquid is reduced and chicken feet are glazed.
These are good hot or cold.
Variations abound. I tend to make them different every time. Sometimes I'll throw in a tablespoon of Chinese salted black beans. When I made them today, instead of sugar I used the tail end of a jar of mango jam, and used Chinese mushroom soy. You can also make them with a whole jalapeno (remove seeds and slice in thin rings). For extra color, create a fine dice of different colored hot and mild peppers.
Yes, yes! Bone-suckin' good!
Now you have an appetizer, and a quart of the best flavored chicken broth in the world to use in your main dish!
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