Red-Cooked Tangerine Chicken

Preparation : Preparation : Rinse and soak dried peel in sherry for 1 hour. Remove chicken neck, heart, gizzard and liver (use in stock pot). Wash chicken and chop into large chunks. Mix sauce ingredients. Browning: Add peanut oil to moderately hot wok. When oil is hot, brown chicken pieces; remove pieces from oil with strainer and drain over bowl. Slow-cooking: Remove all oil from wok; heat to moderate. Add peel, sherry, and sauce (remixed first); add boiling water. Bring to simmer. Add chicken pieces. Cover and simmer for 1 hour or until chicken is tender but still adhering to bones. When tender, remove pieces from sauce. Transfer 1 cup of sauce, less the spices, to a saucepan; thicken with cornstarch paste to a light gravy. Arrange chicken pieces on large serving platter to resemble the shape of a chicken. Place bunch of parsley or watercress at the tail, a flower roll at the head with a piece of star anise for a beak. Pour sauce over chicken when ready to serve.