Three Yellow Chicken (San Huang Ji)

“Three Yellow Chicken” (San Huang Ji or Sanhuangji) is a popular variety of chicken in Shanghai, China, and in Shanghai-style restaurants around the world. The three yellows are yellow beak, yellow feet and yellow feathers/skin,
 
“Then came three-yellow chicken served with ginger sauce — a Cantonese .specialty” was printed in the book China after Mao (1978) by Leslie Evans. <"i>

Sanhuangji, a type of chicken popular on the Hong Kong market” was printed in the book State and Peasant in Contemporary China: The Political Economy of Village Government (1989) by Jean C. Oi. “I located this Chinese recipe that uses the ‘yellow chicken’ which is actually called a sanhuangji chicken, which according to this article literally translates to ‘three-yellow chicken’. The three yellows being yellow-feathered, yellow-skinned, and yellow-beaked” was posted on the newsgroup ba.food on July 31, 2011.
   
China Today explained on May 28, 2015:
   
“When Shanghai opened its ports to the outside world, sliced boiled chicken became popular with urban citizens, and really took off in the 1940s. Its popularity is on account of its distinctive flavor: The special ‘Three Yellow Chicken,’ with yellow feet, skin, and beak, is crisp and savory. The dipping sauce is also a unique recipe, a blend of soy sauce, ginger, and spring onions. It not only maintains the tenderness of the chicken and the golden, glossy color, but also enhances its flavor and freshness.”
 
             
Google Books
China after Mao
By Leslie Evans
New York, NY: Monad Press: distributed by Pathfinder Press
1978
Pg. 88:
Then came three-yellow chicken served with ginger sauce — a Cantonese .specialty—...
   
Google Books
State and Peasant in Contemporary China:
The Political Economy of Village Government

By Jean C. Oi
Berkeley, CA: University of California Press
1989
Pg. 214:
For example, peasants who contract to raise sanhuangji, a type of chicken popular on the Hong Kong market, will be given a cash loan and all the production materials needed to raise the chickens.
 
Google Groups: ba.food
Yellow chicken  
Peter Lawrence
7/31/11
On 7/31/11 1:13 AM, Peter Lawrence wrote:
> On 7/29/11 10:55 AM, Al Eisner wrote:
>>
>> But I think the “yellow” in question is not a matter of skin color, but
>> one of the appearance of the fully feathered bird.
>
> I located this Chinese recipe that uses the “yellow chicken” which is
> actually called a sanhuangji chicken, which according to this article
> literally translates to “three-yellow chicken”. The three yellows being
> yellow-feathered, yellow-skinned, and yellow-beaked.
>
> http://goo.gl/fia5I
 
Another name for this chicken, that gets more hits on Google, is “San Huang Chicken”.  It appears to be used in Shanghai cuisine.
 
Here’s a link to an article about a Shanghai dish called “Chopped Cold Chicken” that uses the yellow San Huang Chicken:
 
http://goo.gl/4og3y
 
BackYard Chickens
Three Yellow Chicken/Tu Ji/ Taiwan Country Chicken? Info please!
Discussion in ‘General breed discussions & FAQ’ started by DavidILoveYou22, Oct 17, 2013.
Oct 17, 2013 Post #1 of 4
DavidILoveYou22
Dec 22, 2012
Eldorado County, Northern CA
I have recently heard about a breed which seems very interesting to me but I can find practically no information, pictures, or even a fixed name on. They have been referred to as Three Yellow Chickens, Tu Ji, and simply Taiwan Country Chickens. They seem to be the mainstay meat bird in Taiwan, as well as good being good layers, according to the PDF file link below this.
   
1 November 2013, China Daily-African Weekly (Nairobi, Kenya), “Chilly, Chili Chicken” by Jue Liu, pg. 27:
Fan Gang, a chef at the 1949 Hidden City restaurant in Beijing, recommends the “three-yellow chicken”, ..., for the main ingredient. You don’t have to look far for this particular type of chicken. With its yellow beak, feet and feathers, it is the most common type of chicken in China. Raised free-range on hillsides, the three-yellow chicken is famous for its tenderness, fresh flavor and nutritional value. Although the leg meat is the most tasty part, chef Fan suggests that the chicken be kept intact while cooking to lock the moisture inside.
 
Twitter
Beautiful Guangxi
@Beautifulgx
Delicious food in HeZhou—Three Yellow Chicken 舌尖上的贺州美食三黄鸡
(A photo is shown.—ed.)
3:36 AM - 21 Aug 2014
         
Shenzhen
Longgang Three-Yellow Chicken
Date:2015-01-16  
Chickens raised in Longgang have special appearance, having yellow mouth, yellow feather and yellow feet, hence the name three-yellow chicken. It is bigger than other chickens with good fleshy.
   
1 May 2015, China Daily (New York, NY), “American cuisine gets a French twist” by Xu Jungian, pg. 8:
Five years later, he has brought local specialties like sanhuangji (three-yellow-chicken) back to the dinner table and helped to re-popularize the idea of Sunday brunch. Sanhuangji is made from a local breed of chicken with a yellow beak, feathers and claws.
 
China Today
2015-May-28
Sliced Boiled Chicken
(...)
When Shanghai opened its ports to the outside world, sliced boiled chicken became popular with urban citizens, and really took off in the 1940s. Its popularity is on account of its distinctive flavor: The special “Three Yellow Chicken,” with yellow feet, skin, and beak, is crisp and savory. The dipping sauce is also a unique recipe, a blend of soy sauce, ginger, and spring onions. It not only maintains the tenderness of the chicken and the golden, glossy color, but also enhances its flavor and freshness.
   
The Food Dictator
THE HIRSHON SICHUAN MOUTHWATERING CHICKEN – 口水鸡
January 2, 2016 by The Generalissimo
(...)
I found this fantastic description of the dish on theworldofchinese.com:
 
The 27-year-old chef at the 1949 restaurant, Fan Gang, recommends the “three-yellow chicken” or 三黄鸡 (Sānhuángjī) for the main ingredient.
 
You don’t have to look far for this particular type of chicken. With its yellow beak, feet, and feathers, they are the most common type of chicken in China. Raised free-range on hillsides, the three-yellow chicken is famous for its tenderness, fresh flavor, and nutritional value.
 
Twitter
Takehiko Hayakawa
@ASIANEGGS
The three yellow chicken dish in China^^
(A photo is shown.—ed.)
2:28 AM - 26 Apr 2017 from Henan, People’s Republic of China
   
SBS (Australia)
David’s has been bringing Shanghai to Melbourne for 20 years
From small tea shop to popular Shanghainese restaurant, David’s has become a Melbourne institution over the last two decades.

By Audrey Bourget
22 AUG 2018 - 1:15 PM UPDATED 15 AUG 2018 - 1:13 PM
Zhou grew up in the heart of the Chinese metropolis, just off Nanjing Road, one of the busiest shopping streets in the world, and Yunnan Road, known for its street food, like dumplings and three yellow chicken.