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San Bei Ji

TAIWAN

Three Cup Chicken

SUBMITTED BY

TJ

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TJ’s family favorite just worked its way into my weekly at-home dinner rotation.

Taiwanese Three Cup Chicken, known as San Bei Ji, is one of Taiwan’s most beloved comfort foods. Famous for its glossy sauce, fragrant basil, and rich aroma of sesame oil and soy sauce, this iconic dish has deep roots in Chinese culinary history. While the name “three cup chicken” refers to equal parts sesame oil, rice wine, and soy sauce, the soy sauces used in modern versions have become one of the most important elements of the dish’s signature flavor.

What Does San Bei Ji Mean?

The name “San Bei Ji” literally translates to “Three Cup Chicken.” Traditionally, the dish was prepared using one cup of sesame oil, one cup of rice wine, and one cup of soy sauce. Over time, cooks adjusted the proportions to create a more balanced flavor, but the spirit of the recipe remained the same.

The origins of the dish are often linked to Jiangxi Province in China during the Song Dynasty. According to popular legend, a loyal prison warden prepared chicken with only three available ingredients: sesame oil, rice wine, and soy sauce. The dish later traveled to Taiwan with Chinese migrants and evolved into the version widely enjoyed today.

How Taiwan Made San Bei Ji Famous

Although the dish has Chinese roots, Taiwan transformed San Bei Ji into a culinary icon. Taiwanese cooks adapted the recipe by adding ingredients like Thai basil, garlic, ginger, and chilies. These additions created the bold and aromatic flavor profile now associated with Taiwanese cuisine.

Street food vendors, family restaurants, and home cooks across Taiwan helped popularize the dish throughout the twentieth century. Today, San Bei Ji is commonly served sizzling hot in clay pots alongside steamed rice, making it a staple of Taiwanese home cooking and restaurant culture.

The Role of Soy Sauce in San Bei Ji

Soy sauce is the heart of San Bei Ji. Without it, the dish would lose its deep savory flavor and rich caramelized appearance. Modern recipes often combine both all-purpose soy sauce and dark soy sauce to create layers of flavor and color.

The all-purpose soy sauce provides saltiness, umami, and fermented depth. It balances the sweetness of sugar and complements the richness of sesame oil. Taiwanese soy sauces are traditionally brewed through fermentation, giving them a complex flavor that enhances braised dishes like San Bei Ji.

Dark soy sauce plays a different role. It is thicker, slightly sweeter, and darker in color. In San Bei Ji, dark soy sauce gives the chicken its signature glossy coating and deep mahogany appearance. The combination of light and dark soy sauces creates the balanced savory-sweet flavor that defines the dish.

San Bei Ji Today

Today, San Bei Ji remains one of Taiwan’s most recognizable dishes worldwide. Its irresistible combination of soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine, and basil continues to attract food lovers everywhere. Whether served at a night market or cooked at home, this classic Taiwanese chicken dish represents the rich culinary traditions that make Taiwanese cuisine unique.

San Bei Ji

Servings 4
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Ingredients
  

  • 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs sliced into bite-sized pieces
  • 4 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 12 cloves garlic peeled
  • 6 sliced ginger
  • 4 fresh or dried chilies optional
  • ⅓ cup Taiwanese rice wine or Shaoxing Wine
  • ¼ cup all-purpose soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 handfull Thai basil
  • cooked rice for serving

Instructions
 

  • In a cooking pan, add sesame oil and heat over medium heat. Add garlic, ginger, and chilies. Stir-fry until fragrant.
  • Add the chicken pieces. Cook until brown on all sides.
  • Pour in rice wine, all purpose soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and sugar. Stir to coat the chicken evenly. Reduce heat, cover with a lid, and let it simmer for 15 minutes
  • Remove the lid and increase the heat to medium-high. Let it cook for another 5-10 minutes until the sauce thickens and chicken is cooked through.
  • Toss a handful of basil in the end and cook for another minute until wilted.
  • Serve hot over steamed rice and enjoy!

Notes

Recipe inspired by One Happy Bite
Course: Dinner
Region: Asia

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About Beryl

I have been in the film and media industry for the past 12 years and have worked for companies including Great Big Story, ABC, CNN, Martha Stewart, News Corporation, Harper Collins and Fast Company.