# Boneless Chicken Feet Recipe

![Finished Boneless Chicken Feet](./无骨鸡爪.jpg)
**The color in the picture is relatively light because my family prefers less soy sauce.**

This is a simple-to-make but physically demanding and patience-testing recipe for boneless chicken feet. It is sour, spicy, and appetizing, with a chewy and refreshing texture. For a first-time attempt, the total time required is 8 hours and 15 minutes.

Estimated Cooking Difficulty: ★★★☆☆

## Essential Ingredients and Tools

- Chicken feet
- Ginger
- Cooking wine (Liaojiu)
- Green onion (Scallion)
- Garlic
- Millet pepper (Xiaomila)
- Onion
- Light soy sauce
- Oyster sauce
- Black vinegar (Chencu/Vinegar is recommended)
- White sugar
- Salt
- Sichuan pepper oil
- Cilantro (Coriander)
- Lemon

## Quantities

This amount is sufficient for 2-3 people.

- Chicken feet: 1kg
- Ginger: 4 slices
- Cooking wine: 65g
- Green onion: 3 segments (5cm per segment)
- Garlic: 10 cloves
- Millet pepper: 4 for mild heat, 6 for medium heat, 12 for hot heat (Hot heat is recommended)
- Onion: Half an onion
- Light soy sauce: 75g = 15g * 5
- Oyster sauce: 30g = 15g * 2
- Black vinegar (Chencu/Vinegar is recommended): 50g
- White sugar: 10g
- Salt: 3g
- Sichuan pepper oil: 10ml
- Cilantro: 3 stalks
- Lemon: 2 pieces (adjust acidity based on 1 piece as the unit)

## Instructions

### Preparing the Chicken Feet

- Use scissors or a knife to cut off all the nails on the chicken feet, **including the flesh and bone under the nail, ensuring no nail remains**.
- Wash them thoroughly with water and set aside.
- Place the `chicken feet` into a large pot to remove the gamey odor.
- Add the `green onion`, `cooking wine`, and `ginger`.
- Add water to cover the `chicken feet`.
- Bring to a boil over high heat. **Skim off the foam that rises to the surface during boiling.**
- Once the water reaches **100 degrees Celsius and boils vigorously**, let it cook for 10 minutes.
- Turn off the heat, remove the chicken feet, drain the water, wash them again, and place them in a bowl.

### Deboning

This step can be skipped. This step takes approximately 2 hours.

- Place the chicken feet in the **freezer** for 20 minutes.
- Move them to the refrigerator compartment (not the freezer), then take them out in batches of **10 at a time** to debone.
- Starting from the tip of the toes (the chicken feet's toes), use a knife to slice open each toe **up to the back of the foot**.
- Then, use the knife to slice open the back of the foot down the entire "arm" (shank).
- Bend each toe joint at the knuckles **until you hear a cracking sound**.
- Holding the tip of the toe, push it inward. Do this for each toe, first pushing it to the middle of the palm and back of the foot.
- Once the skin of each toe is separated, push from the palm towards the shank until the entire toe is removed.
- Place the deboned meat in a bowl and set aside.

### Preparing the Marinade

- Cut the `Xiaomila chili` into small, uniform pieces
- Finely chop the `garlic`, `onion`, and `cilantro`
- Cut the `lemon` in half and squeeze the lemon juice into the container with the chicken feet
- Pour all the seasonings into the container with the chicken feet, and add the `Xiaomila chili`, `garlic`, `onion`, and `cilantro`
- Mix everything thoroughly
- Refrigerate for one night (6 hours)
- Once mixed, add everything to the prepared chicken feet

## Additional Information

- During preparation, keep an eye on the boiling water level. If the water drops below 3/4 of the ingredients, add hot water to cover them.
- Chicken feet deboning tutorial: [bili_89324373958](https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1t44y117D8?share_source=copy_web)

If you encounter any issues or have suggestions for improvement while following this guide, please submit an Issue or Pull Request.