Sanbeiji

Sanbeiji is a popular chicken dish in Chinese cuisine and one of the most iconic dishes of Jiangxi cuisine. The dish originates from the Jiangxi province of southern China, and is a specialty of Ningdu where the population are Hakka. The dish has become especially popular in Taiwan, being introduced to the island by the Hakka people. It is also served as a postpartum confinement food by the Chinese community of Malaysia. The Jiangxi style has a complex flavor and is spicy, while the Taiwan variant has a more simplistic flavor and is non-spicy. There are several versions for the origins of sanbeiji. These stories often involve a cook who placed three cups of sauces into an earthenware pot and simmered it for a long time. One version is that of Wen Tianxiang, a national hero and Jiangxi native during the Song dynasty. Wen was captured by the invading Yuan armies of Kublai Khan and tortured for four years during his imprisonment. It was during this time that a sympathetic prison warden cooked the dish for him (using these limited resources) before Wen Tianxiang's execution. The dish derives its name from the three cups of sauces supposedly used for the anecdotal dish. For each chicken, a cup each of soy sauce, rice wine (usually mijiu although it may be mixed with Shaoxing jiu), and sesame oil were included. Lin Shangquan, a famous chef in Taiwan, believes that the traditional recipe called for a cup each of soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar, or rice wine, soy sauce, and sesame oil, with added ginger, garlic, and basil.[citation needed]

Source: Wikipedia