Hot and Spicy Chicken Feet

Hot and spicy chicken feet in a bowl with scallion and sesame seed garnishes

The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Total: 35 mins
Servings: 6 to 8 servings

Bring Asian street food into your kitchen with this hot and spicy chicken feet recipe. This amazing appetizer doesn't have much meat to it, but it is packed with complex flavor. The use of sake, fresh ginger, soy sauce, hot chiles, cinnamon, and star anise, along with the classic Asian sauces—oyster and hoisin—create a delightful mixture for your taste buds.

While chicken feet are known to be a favorite treat in Asian countries, the appetizer is becoming more popular here in the United States. It is also enjoyed in Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, Romania, Moldova, Italy, Jamaica, South Africa, Peru, and Mexico. Chicken feet are eaten similarly to the way we eat chicken wings, so instead of making wings next time you're watching the big game, change it up with these spicy chicken feet.

Ingredients

  • 32 chicken feet (about 2 pounds)

  • Kosher salt

  • 1/2 cup sake

  • 1/3 cup water

  • 6 large thin slices fresh ginger

  • 1/3 cup soy sauce

  • 1/4 cup sugar (Chinese yellow rock or granulated sugar)

  • 2 dried hot chiles, crushed

  • 2 tablespoons oyster sauce

  • 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce

  • 2 pods star anise 

  • 1 stick cinnamon

  • 1 cup sliced scallions (1-inch pieces)

  • 2 tablespoons minced scallions, garnish

  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted, garnish

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Hot and spicy chicken feet ingredients gathered

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  2. Rub the cleaned chicken feet with kosher salt and let stand for 10 minutes.

    Cleaned chicken feet rubbed with kosher salt in a glass bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  3. Rinse the salted chicken feet under cold water.

    Salted chicken feet rinsed under cold water and transferred back to the glass bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  4. Boil another pot of water, salt it generously, and add the chicken feet; blanch for 5 minutes and drain well.

    Chicken feet blanched in a pot of water

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  5. Place a 14-inch sauté pan over high heat. Add the chicken and dry-sear until lightly brown.

    Searing chicken feet in a pot

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  6. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook, covered, for about 10 minutes.

    Vegetables added to spicy chicken feet ingredients in the pot

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  7. Uncover and simmer until the sauce has become thick and cooked down, tossing frequently to coat the feet as the sauce reduces.

    Chicken feet cooking in the sauce

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  8. Garnish with minced scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Serve and enjoy.

    Hot and spicy chicken feet in a pot garnished with scallions and sesame seeds

    The Spruce Eats / Madhumita Sathishkumar

Tips for Cleaning Chicken Feet


  • Add the chicken feet, in batches if necessary, to a large pot of boiling and cook for approximately 30 seconds. While you can add more than 1 chicken foot at a time, make sure not to overcrowd the pot. Set each chicken foot on a plate to cool. Once cool enough to handle, begin peeling off the skin one foot at a time. You may find it easier to peel the top layer of the nails first before removing the skin from the rest of the foot, but either way is fine. The goal is to remove the top layer of skin and nails. Proceed to fully cut the nails off of each chicken foot at the first joint. The scaly skin and nails are unusable and should be discarded. 
  • You can clean the chicken feet up to a day prior to cooking. Just place them in the refrigerator until you are ready to proceed with the recipe. 
  • Chicken feet freeze well and will keep for at least six months as long as they are wrapped airtight to protect them from any freezer burn.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
317 Calories
17g Fat
12g Carbs
24g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6 to 8
Amount per serving
Calories 317
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17g 22%
Saturated Fat 5g 23%
Cholesterol 95mg 32%
Sodium 884mg 38%
Total Carbohydrate 12g 4%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Total Sugars 8g
Protein 24g
Vitamin C 3mg 14%
Calcium 132mg 10%
Iron 2mg 9%
Potassium 147mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)