There are quite a few different marinades. used.

Alvin's Drunken Chicken
Adapted from Alvin's Drunken Chicken recipe from Masterchef
By Pig Pig's Corner

Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 1 hr

Ingredients:

8 chicken quarters
2 1/2 cups Shaoxing wine
1 1/4 cup mirin
2 1/4 cups water
60 g gula melaka (Malaysian palm sugar)(Ellen's note: light brown sugar works for this)
2 ounces fresh ginger - sliced
2 tsp salt
Optional ( mostly for looks) 1/2 cup goji berries or ((ellen's note) craisins

Directions:

Place the Shaoxing, mirin, water, palm sugar and ginger in a large pot and bring to the boil.
Add the chicken, then cover and simmer very gently (liquid barely bubbling) for about 1 hr. Add in goji berries at the last 10 mins of simmering.
Season to taste with salt.
Remove the pan from the heat and allow the chicken to cool in the poaching liquid.
Serve chicken with poaching liquid. [You will end up with lots of poaching liquid, so freeze them for future use.]

Here is a more authentic recipe; note that it is served cold!

Drunken Chicken
By Martin Yan

This drunken chicken recipe doesn’t call for chickens who’ve had one too many martinis. It actually gets its name from the step of marinating moist, cooked chicken pieces overnight in Chinese rice wine mixed with sugar, ginger, and other flavorings.
[Credit: PhotoDisc, Inc.]
Credit: PhotoDisc, Inc.

Preparation time: 25 minutes

Cooking time: 50 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2 1/4 pounds)

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 cup Chinese rice wine

3 tablespoons brandy

3 tablespoons soy sauce

6 pieces ginger

2 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1/8 teaspoon white pepper

Discard any lumps of fat from the chicken.

Place the chicken in a 1 1/2-quart heatproof bowl.

Thinly slice the ginger and then lightly crush it.

Add the chicken broth, rice wine, brandy, soy sauce, ginger, sugar, and white pepper.

Be sure to evenly coat the chicken with the mixture.

Add water to the wok until it’s about about a quarter full.

Arrange four chopsticks tic-tac-toe style slightly above the water level.

Bring the water to a boil.

Place the bowl that contains the chicken on the chopsticks and cover the wok.

Steam the chicken over high heat until it’s no longer pink when cut, 45 to 50 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the steaming juices.

Let the chicken cool slightly.

Cut the chicken into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

Strain the juices and skim the fat.

Place the sliced chicken in a serving bowl.

Pour enough juices into the bowl to cover the chicken.

Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Serve the chicken chilled with the gelatinized juices.

The steaming liquid in which you marinate the cooked drunken chicken overnight may gelatinize by the time you remove it from the fridge. In fact, this gel is really one of the best parts of the dish — serve it with the chilled chicken.