These braised Chicken Feet are cooked long and slow in a rich sauce – so tender and flavorful! This healthy recipe rivals what you would find in the best Chinese Dim Sum restaurant. You can also eat them as an appetizer or snack. The best part? No deep-frying is required!
Chicken feet are very popular in many Asian countries including China, Korea, the Philippines, and South Africa. They’re low in calories and known to be good for the skin.
There are many different ways to cook them such as chicken feet soup, bone broth, fried chicken feet, and of course, the most popular dim sum chicken feet – so juicy, tender, and full of flavor!
Traditional chicken feet dim sum is deep-fried before braising. My version is much healthier with no mess or oil wastage. The chicken feet are braised in a rich and flavorful sauce made of garlic, ginger, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and beer. Serve them as dim sum for brunch, or as finger food for a game day party. It’ll be more popular than chicken wings. Yum!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Chicken Feet: You’ll need to trim off the nails and clean them thoroughly before cooking.
- Vegetable Oil: It has a high smoke point so don’t substitute with extra virgin olive oil.
- Garlic: Use fresh garlic instead of garlic powder.
- Ginger: It adds great flavor to the dish. Remove the skin and cut it into thin pieces.
- Soy Sauce: It adds a nice saltiness and umami flavor. I recommend using dark soy sauce for the beautiful deeper color, but you can use light soy sauce if you prefer.
- Oyster Sauce: It’s sweet and salty, adding richer flavor.
- Sugar: It helps to sweeten the sauce. You can use regular sugar or brown sugar.
- Beer: Braising with beer enhances the dish by creating a more flavorful sauce. You can substitute water in a pinch.
How to Cook Chicken Feet (Step-by-step Photos)
1. Chop the nails off the claws using a sharp knife and rinse the feet thoroughly.
2. Add chicken feet to a skillet or wok, then add cold water to cover the chicken feet.
3. Bring to boil and cook for 10 minutes, then drain the water.
4. Place the skillet over medium-high heat, and add vegetable oil, garlic and ginger. Stir fry until fragrant.
5. Add chicken feet, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar.
6. Pour in beer, and bring to boil.
7. Cover with a lid and simmer for 25-30 minutes.
8. Remove the lid, and turn the heat to high. Stir fry until the sauce has thickened.
Tips and Tricks for this Chicken Feet Dim Sum Recipe
- Make sure to cut the nails and clean the chicken feet thoroughly before cooking.
- It’s important to add chicken feet to the COLD water, bring them to boil and cook for 10 minutes before braising. This will help to remove the odors from the chicken.
- Check the chicken feet from time to time and make sure there’s enough liquid during braising. Add water if needed.
- If your sauce is too thin, you can add the cornstarch slurry to thicken the sauce. To make the slurry, mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of water.
- You can add crushed dried hot chili to the sauce for the delicious spicy chicken feet.
How to Clean and Prepare Chicken Feet
First you’ll need to trim off the nails off the claws using a sharp knife. Then rinse the feet thoroughly under running water.
Before you braise the chicken feet, it’s best to add it to cold water, bring to boil, and then cook for 10 minutes to remove any odor.
Chicken Feet Nutrition
Chicken feet are packed with proteins, calcium, and collagen. These nutrients are great for improving joint movement to minimize arthritis and joint pain. 100g of chicken feet provide 88mg or 9% of the daily value of calcium.
How to Eat Chicken Feet
Eating chicken feet can take some getting used to. Grasp one firmly using chopsticks. Hold them with the toes pointing towards you. Nibble off the skin and collagen, spitting out bones. If chopsticks are not your thing, you can also use your fingers to eat them like chicken wings.
How to Serve Chicken Feet
Serve chicken feet hot or cold on a small plate with a dipping sauce if you like. They are best paired with other Chinese dim sum dishes and served with green tea or beer as a beverage.
How to Store Chicken Feet
You can store leftover chicken feet for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They can also be frozen for up to 2 months. To reheat, steam for 4 to 5 minutes or until hot.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where to Buy Chicken Feet?
You can find chicken feet at most local Asian grocery stores, especially Chinese grocery stores. Alternatively, order them from a butcher shop.
Are Chicken Feet Healthy?
Chicken feet have many nutrients and contain very little fat, about 0.5% (no saturated fats with a good profile of fatty acids). It’s considered to be part of a healthy diet.
What Do Chicken Feet Taste Like?
They taste like other parts of the chicken except that they have a different texture. It resembles the skin part of chicken wings but with a tougher texture and is slightly stringier.
Can You Eat the Bones in Chicken Feet?
You should not eat the bones in chicken feet and instead spit them out. Everything else is edible.
Can You Cook Chicken Feet in A Slow Cooker?
Yes, you can use this recipe and cook the chicken feet in a slow cooker. Instead of braising them in a skillet, you can cook them in a slow cooker on high for 2 hours.
If You Like This Recipe Try These Out:
Easy Chicken Feet Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken feet
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 inch ginger sliced
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce (I highly recommend using dark soy sauce so that the chicken feet will have a very nice dark brown color)
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 can beer (12oz)
- optional green onions for serving
Instructions
- Chop the nails off the claws using a sharp knife and rinse the feet thoroughly. Remove any dirty part on the chicken feet. (Try to cut them through the joint for easy cutting.)
- Add cold water and chicken feet to a skillet or wok. (Make sure the chicken feet are submerged.)
- Bring to boil and cook for 10 minutes, and drain the water.
- Place the skillet over medium-high heat, and add vegetable oil.
- Add garlic and ginger. Stir fry until fragrant.
- Add chicken feet, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar. Mix together with a wooden spoon.
- Add beer and bring to boil.
- Cover with a lid and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until tender. (Check the chicken feet from time to time and make sure there's enough liquid during braising. Add water if needed.)
- Remove the lid, and turn the heat to high. Stir fry until the sauce has thickened. (If you’d like to thicken your sauce faster, you can add the mixture of cornstarch and water. Mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water).
Notes
- If you like the spicy flavor, you can add crushed dried hot chili to the sauce.
- It’s important to add chicken feet to the COLD water, bring them to boil and cook for 10 minutes before braising. Don’t skip this step as this will help to remove the odors from the chicken.
Nutrition
TERESA ONG LEE says
these are NOT PUFFED UP!
What’s the secret to getting them puffy?
izzycooking says
Hi Teresa, in order to get them puffed up, you’ll need to deep fry them. We choose a healthy recipe which gets all the flavors without deep-frying.
Samique March Dallas says
You can also put a little corn starch or baking powder and put them in the aircrew before braising in the sauce. Scrumptious! Still maintain the healthy profile.
Serena Bussell says
Thanks for the tip!
Brighteyes Valentin says
I am
Making this recipe today and am subs beer with diet ginger ale and coconut brown sugar. I’m so excited I love chicken feet.
Serena Bussell says
I had all ingredients except the dark soy so I substituted kecap Manis and some tamari and reduced the sugar (demerera sugar). It was delicious and I am making them again tomorrow. Is it ok to freeze some small portions as I am the only one who eats them in my family, lol. Thanks so much!
Izzy says
Hi Serena, glad that you like the recipe. Yes, you can freeze them as long as you store and handle them properly.
rebecca says
i like the recipe yummy and easy to prepare
Rhiannon says
Good base recipe to follow- I had 1.5 kg of chicken feet- I soaked them in cold water (added ice chips) for a few hours while I did some housework. Then added extra garlic and ginger- 2 chillies (a red and green) used more oyster sauce than suggested, did 1&1/2 tins of mid strength beer. Absolutely delicious!
Lynne says
Hi! How long can I keep this fresh in the fridge? Can it stay fresh for 2 weeks? Thanks!
Izzy says
Hi Lynne, the cooked chicken feet can last about 3-4 days in the fridge.
Tyheshia says
I had just finished making stock with chicken feet and necks. It called for the tossing out of the meat after boiling 😩. I am so glad I found this recipe! I can’t even eat them now for dietary reasons but I made them (both the feet and the necks) and tasted the sauce. It was delicious. I will be putting them in food savers and freezing them. I can’t wait til’ I can eat them.
*Mine we’re plump because I had been cooking them for 9 hrs.
Sieu Nguyen says
How do you get the color so red if using dark soy and oyster sauce?
Sam Bleakley says
Amazing recipe. The beer I use is Speaights which is an Ale or a larger like Heineken.
It’s just Yuuuuuum!!
Lysa says
Just made this as a last-minute dinner for my husband and me. I used seasoning soy sauce instead of regular soy sauce, and water instead of beer, and it was still delicious! We devoured all the chicken feet. Thanks for sharing your recipe ^-^
Izzy says
Hi Lysa, glad to hear that you and your husband like the recipe. Thanks for letting me know. Izzy
Jennifer says
Could this recipe be used with deboned chicken feet?
Izzy says
Yes, you can
Angry Rooster says
So you eat the entire foot, bones and all? I run a chicken farm and I just throw the feet away. Curious as to how they become edible.
Skin in the Game says
First time ever trying this recipe. Sauce was absolutely fantastic. Dumb question though. I have chicken feet from home farmed meat chickens so I didn’t have to buy them. I thought the yellow “skin” had to be peeled of so it’s not eaten. So I peeled. The feet were left with tendons, etc exposed. Not at all like your photos that seem to have the skin left on. Skin on or off?
Izzy says
For the traditional Chinese chicken feet recipe, you don’t need to peel off the skin.
Arleen says
I haven’t tried this yet but, will do so soon. I have my chicken feet and all the ingredients ready to go. What goes well with this dish and what else would you suggest is served?
Carol Laschuk says
Absolutely delicious! I love chicken feet!!