HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE

HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE

#SIAintheKitchen

A long time ago (circa 2013), I attempted to make hainanese chicken rice, a classic Singaporean/Malaysian dish. It is comprised of a poached whole chicken, chicken ginger soup, rice that’s been cooked with the broth (sometimes called oil rice) and allllllllll the fabulous accompaniments, varying on which region you’re from: scallion ginger sauce, ginger garlic sauce, chili garlic sauce, cucumber, cilantro and tomato. It’s so comforting and there are always hoards of people lining at various stalls in Malaysia and Singapore, each claiming that they have the best.

As I said, I had tried to make this dish back in my old Umami & Me blogging days with awful results. I don’t know if I understood the term “poach” but it was anything but. The chicken was dry. I think I had just boiled it - what a waste! The broth was tasteless. Don’t even talk to me about how the rice came out - it didn't. The only thing that was fathomable was the ginger scallion sauce. I was scarred for life. How could something so simple be so difficult to cook? I was embarrassed and hainanese chicken was a dish that I know related to “never cooking from scratch - only buy this when out” vault. Sigh.

Until now.

Thanks to COVID-19 I’m stuck at home in self-isolation which honestly has been a godsend. I’m making all these dishes that I had wanted to cook before but never had the courage or time to. I’ve adopted a newfound courage and have been tackling dishes that I was once scared of or have been intimated by. YAY.

I had seen an InstantPot version of hainenese chicken that I was tempted to make. It was an all-in-one-pot dish which was great for ease and convenience but what about the soup? I always loved the soup. It’s simple broth that makes me feel so good - a broth that your mom would cook for you when you were sick!

I began researching recipes again and it seemed so damn easy to make from scratch. I decided to take the plunge and do it from scratch. I bought a whole chicken and went to town.

My tips for first-timers?

• Heavily salt your chicken during exfoliation, seasoning and the broth. It’s so imperative. Remember that you’re only seasoning this with kosher salt and the accompanying soup. Salt is key - don’t be shy.

• Get rid of any excess scum or impurities. See all that gunky stuff floating to the top? Skim it off with a fine mesh sieve or a spoon. It makes the soup taste and look better - you don’t want any of that stuff ruining the dish.

• Use white Thai jasmine rice. I used brown jasmine rice and although it was good, it would be 10x better with white. Seriously. I never have white rice in my house anymore other than basmati so this was a bit of a loss for me. If you are adamant in using brown, make sure it’s brown jasmine specifically!

HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE - makes 1 whole chicken, serves 4 - 6 (adapted from Steamy Kitchen)

Chicken

• 1 whole 3.5 lb chicken

• 4” knob of ginger, peeled and sliced on the diagonal

• 1 bunch scallions, cut into 2” pieces, ends trimmed

• kosher salt, as needed (probably around 1/3 cup)

Rice

• 4 tbsp vegetable oil

• 2” knob of ginger, peeled and minced

• 6 cloves garlic, minced

• 3 cups brown jasmine rice

• 6 cups chicken broth

For the Table

• ginger scallion sauce

• chili garlic sauce

• 1 cucumber, sliced

• 1 tomato, sliced

Cooking the chicken:

1. Begin by exfoliating your chicken with kosher salt. Be liberal and scrub off any yellow gunk on the chicken. It should be glistening and clean-looking after. I exfoliate my chicken all over.

2. Next, begin to season your chicken inside and under the skin - be liberal.

3. Stuff the inside of the chicken cavity with the sliced ginger and scallions.

4. Place the chicken in a stock pot and fill with water. The pot should be filled enough where the chicken is submerged by at least 1”. More water = more soup! But be sure to season adequately by the end of it.

5. Turn up the heat to high and as soon as the water is brought to a boil, drop the heat down to low so that it can simmer. Cook for 30 minutes or until you insert a chopstick underneath the leg and the juices run clear.

6. Carefully remove the chicken from the broth and plunge into an ice bath. Remove and carve.

Cooking the rice:

1. In a pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high until hot and glossy. Add in the garlic and ginger and saute until fragrant. Add in the rice and toasted in the oil until the rice begins to become more opaque in colour. Ladle in some of the poaching liquid, bring to a boil and lower down to a simmer. Cover and cook for another 20 - 30 minutes or until the rice is cooked.

Assembly

1. Serve the chicken with a scoop of cooked oil rice, a cup of poaching broth, and with sliced cucumber, cilantro, tomato and condiments (ie. ginger scallion sauce, ginger garlic sauce, and samba sauce).