Hainanese chicken rice or simply chicken rice as called in Singapore. One of the easiest and yet super awesome food I ever tried in Singapore. Here is my try to replicate same. Thanks to many blogs and videos on youtube for this recipe.
Its a very simple dish, they serve boiled chicken at room temperature along with dipping sauce and hot steamed rice cooked in chicken broth. Simple isn't it. Actual or I may say authentic recipe demands full chicken with skin, however I had some leftover un-skinned chicken breasts to go with. So I used them instead.
What we need:
2 chicken breast pieces (Or any chicken part with bone ideally)
2-3 small slices of ginger
1-2 strands of spring onion (preferably one with small onion bulbs)
Salt
sliced medium red onion (optional)
1 tsp Minced ginger-garlic paste (homemade-optional)
Raw Rice of your choice
Well this is 2 step process. In first step we will boil chicken and then in second step cook rice in chicken broth.
First of all air dry your chicken or make it dry by using paper towels. Rub salt all over chicken from inside and outside, this will get rid of dead skin or any other gucks etc from chicken.
Rinse out chicken thoroughly and then again let it become dry in open air or use paper towels.
Now again use salt and rub all over chicken for seasoning.
Stuff chicken with slices of ginger and chopped spring onion strands.
Take a heavy bottom pan and put chicken in it. Pour in room temperature water till chicken is completely submerged in water.
Bring water to boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low flame and cook chicken covered for about 20-30 minutes (depending upon size of chicken) on low flame. Here you can remove some leftover impurities from water.
If you are using chicken pieces, just put slices of ginger and spring onion into water and it should work too.
Turn off the heat take chicken out and put chicken in ice water. This shall stop cooking immediately and tightens the skin (most important).
Take it out from ICE water and let it air dry. Our chicken is ready now, keep it aside. Don't throw away that broth as we want it to cook rice in it.
Authentic recipe needs to brush chicken with sesame oil before serving.
Prepare dipping sauce:
Dipping sauce is pretty much simple. I mixed 1 tsp red chilly paste in 2 tbsp chicken broth, along with 1/2 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp lime juice. You can be creative here to make dipping sauce as per your taste.
Prepare rice:
We need to use leftover chicken broth from boiling for cooking rice, so get broth sieved to different pan and let it come to room temperature.
This is optional step but you can have saute onions with minced ginger-garlic paste until they are browned. We shall add this just before rice is almost cooked. This is a real flavor enhancer by the way :)
Measure desired rice and add appropriate amount of broth. If broth is less then add water, in this case you may also want to drop in 1-2 slice of ginger and stand of spring onion (make sure to remove them at end of cooking procedure).
Our rice is ready to serve, plate it along with chicken and dipping sauce, you may serve salad vegetable along with it as per your choice.
Its a very simple dish, they serve boiled chicken at room temperature along with dipping sauce and hot steamed rice cooked in chicken broth. Simple isn't it. Actual or I may say authentic recipe demands full chicken with skin, however I had some leftover un-skinned chicken breasts to go with. So I used them instead.
What we need:
2 chicken breast pieces (Or any chicken part with bone ideally)
2-3 small slices of ginger
1-2 strands of spring onion (preferably one with small onion bulbs)
Salt
sliced medium red onion (optional)
1 tsp Minced ginger-garlic paste (homemade-optional)
Raw Rice of your choice
Well this is 2 step process. In first step we will boil chicken and then in second step cook rice in chicken broth.
Cooking chicken
Prepare chicken:First of all air dry your chicken or make it dry by using paper towels. Rub salt all over chicken from inside and outside, this will get rid of dead skin or any other gucks etc from chicken.
Rinse out chicken thoroughly and then again let it become dry in open air or use paper towels.
Now again use salt and rub all over chicken for seasoning.
Stuff chicken with slices of ginger and chopped spring onion strands.
Take a heavy bottom pan and put chicken in it. Pour in room temperature water till chicken is completely submerged in water.
Bring water to boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low flame and cook chicken covered for about 20-30 minutes (depending upon size of chicken) on low flame. Here you can remove some leftover impurities from water.
If you are using chicken pieces, just put slices of ginger and spring onion into water and it should work too.
Turn off the heat take chicken out and put chicken in ice water. This shall stop cooking immediately and tightens the skin (most important).
Take it out from ICE water and let it air dry. Our chicken is ready now, keep it aside. Don't throw away that broth as we want it to cook rice in it.
Authentic recipe needs to brush chicken with sesame oil before serving.
Prepare dipping sauce:
Dipping sauce is pretty much simple. I mixed 1 tsp red chilly paste in 2 tbsp chicken broth, along with 1/2 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp lime juice. You can be creative here to make dipping sauce as per your taste.
Sieved broth
Prepare rice:
We need to use leftover chicken broth from boiling for cooking rice, so get broth sieved to different pan and let it come to room temperature.
This is optional step but you can have saute onions with minced ginger-garlic paste until they are browned. We shall add this just before rice is almost cooked. This is a real flavor enhancer by the way :)
Measure desired rice and add appropriate amount of broth. If broth is less then add water, in this case you may also want to drop in 1-2 slice of ginger and stand of spring onion (make sure to remove them at end of cooking procedure).
Our rice is ready to serve, plate it along with chicken and dipping sauce, you may serve salad vegetable along with it as per your choice.
Enjoy your rice.
