Hainan Chicken Rice
Hainan Chicken Rice is a dish I grew up with. It is commonly available at hawker centers. For just a few dollars ($2.50 back then), you get a plate of glistening chicken over a pile of rice and slices of cucumber. We ordered it frequently even though it is a dish my Hainanese mother and grandmother made at home too, that's how much we love the dish. My family's version is simple but equally delicious if not more than some of the more involved methods out there (deliciousness enhanced by ease). The only drawback of our method - which cooks the chicken by steaming - rather than the slow braising of chicken in chicken stock and then dunking chicken in an ice bath - is that the chicken looks better with the latter way. The ice bath shrinks the skin and adds a nice shine. On the other hand, the ice bath turns the chicken cooler sooner, not to mention use of extra large mixing bowl. However, for our purposes - getting good food to the table with minimum work on a weekday - steaming works perfectly for us.
A note on chicken: I highly, highly recommend buying free range organic air-chilled chicken. Actually, it does not matter so much if the chicken is not organic, but the free range or even pasture raised title is important. Air chill is preferable too. The reason I say this is because a free range chicken is less fatty than conventional factory raised chicken. You can really smell and taste the difference too (fresh smelling, not slimy). We have been buying Mary's free range, organic air chilled chicken (usually when Whole Foods sells a pair at $1.99 per pound). Then, last week, I bought some just conventionally raised chicken from Trader Joe's and the chicken tasted a lot fattier. I am normally a dark meat person, but I could barely swallow the thigh meat that day. It was too lardaceous. The cooked skin, rather than being lean and wonderfully chewy, is thick with a fine layer of fat under. It was gross. I finally get why Americans prefer white meat in general.
Anyhow, here's the recipe. You do need a special pot with a steam insert though. You can probably find a decent, inexpensive one from Target or Walmart (the insert just have to be deep enough to hold the chicken). See for what I am talking about https://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Classic-Stainless-Steamer-Insert/dp/B00005Q5I8/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1488506344&sr=8-25&keywords=steam+pot
Make sure your pot keeps the chicken above and a good distance from the water.
A ginger grater would come in handy too: (see http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/6526024/?catalogId=18&bnrid=3120901&cm_ven=Google_PLA&cm_cat=Cooks%27_Tools&cm_pla=Graters_&_Peelers&cm_ite=Ceramic_Ginger_Grater_|_Williams-Sonoma&srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=30-193747608-2)
Serves 4 adults (
1 chicken (3.5 to 4 lbs)
1/8 to 1/4 cup of salt (really depends on the size of the chicken. The salt will be steamed off to flavor the broth).
3 to 4 inch length of ginger
10 cloves of garlic
2 to 3 scallion (optional)
2 cups of rice
1 cucumber or head of butter lettuce.
Siracha (hot sauce)
1. Remove the chicken from package, rinse and pat dry. Rub chicken inside and out with the salt. Set aside to marinate for at least two hours and up to six hours. You can always rub the salt in the night before for next day's dinner, just reduce the salt slightly (but not too much as the salt will be steamed off to flavor the rice).
2. If you can, take the chicken out of the fridge about 30 to 40 minutes before cooking. If using scallion, place in chicken's cavity at this point.
3. Bring to boil about three inches of water inside the steamer pot. Once it comes to boil, put chicken into the insert and place insert in pot. Cover and steam at medium heat for about 33 minutes (about 7 to 10 minutes more if the chicken is starting out cold from the fridge or if you have a larger chicken).
4. Meanwhile, smash and peel the garlic. Peel ginger and slice five 1/4 inch slices of ginger from the length you have. Keep the rest of ginger whole for the next step. Set garlic and sliced ginger aside.
5. To make the chili dipping sauce: finely grate ginger with ginger grater. Set aside into bowl.
6. Peel and slice cucumber or wash lettuce.
7. When the timer for the chicken goes off chicken is cooked, remove insert and place on a large plate. Keep the chicken covered.
8. Place 2 cups of rice into an automatic rice cooker. Add the ginger slices and smashed garlic. Pour the chicken dripping/stock left in pot to the correct level. Cook. Alternatively, place the rice, garlic and ginger in a medium pot. Add three cups (and perhaps 1 to 2 tbs) of stock to the pot. Bring to boil, cover, and simmer over low heat till all the stock has been absorbed.
9. When rice is done, transfer chicken onto platter and surround it with sliced cucumber. If using lettuce, place on separate plate.
10. Back to the dipping sauce: add to the grated ginger, a few squirts of siracha (according to spice tolerance). Add chicken stock to the sauce to make it more runny (if you are out of stock from pot, check for stock left in the cavity of the chicken). Add a tsp of fine sugar. Stir and serve.
We like the cucumber to go with the chicken. Sometimes, we make a package with the lettuce by putting a spoonful of rice, a bit of chicken and dipping sauce into the lettuce and then fold it like an envelop. It sounds quite complicated, but it is really easy a meal to prepare.
A note on chicken: I highly, highly recommend buying free range organic air-chilled chicken. Actually, it does not matter so much if the chicken is not organic, but the free range or even pasture raised title is important. Air chill is preferable too. The reason I say this is because a free range chicken is less fatty than conventional factory raised chicken. You can really smell and taste the difference too (fresh smelling, not slimy). We have been buying Mary's free range, organic air chilled chicken (usually when Whole Foods sells a pair at $1.99 per pound). Then, last week, I bought some just conventionally raised chicken from Trader Joe's and the chicken tasted a lot fattier. I am normally a dark meat person, but I could barely swallow the thigh meat that day. It was too lardaceous. The cooked skin, rather than being lean and wonderfully chewy, is thick with a fine layer of fat under. It was gross. I finally get why Americans prefer white meat in general.
Anyhow, here's the recipe. You do need a special pot with a steam insert though. You can probably find a decent, inexpensive one from Target or Walmart (the insert just have to be deep enough to hold the chicken). See for what I am talking about https://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Classic-Stainless-Steamer-Insert/dp/B00005Q5I8/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1488506344&sr=8-25&keywords=steam+pot
Make sure your pot keeps the chicken above and a good distance from the water.
A ginger grater would come in handy too: (see http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/6526024/?catalogId=18&bnrid=3120901&cm_ven=Google_PLA&cm_cat=Cooks%27_Tools&cm_pla=Graters_&_Peelers&cm_ite=Ceramic_Ginger_Grater_|_Williams-Sonoma&srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=30-193747608-2)
Serves 4 adults (
1 chicken (3.5 to 4 lbs)
1/8 to 1/4 cup of salt (really depends on the size of the chicken. The salt will be steamed off to flavor the broth).
3 to 4 inch length of ginger
10 cloves of garlic
2 to 3 scallion (optional)
2 cups of rice
1 cucumber or head of butter lettuce.
Siracha (hot sauce)
1. Remove the chicken from package, rinse and pat dry. Rub chicken inside and out with the salt. Set aside to marinate for at least two hours and up to six hours. You can always rub the salt in the night before for next day's dinner, just reduce the salt slightly (but not too much as the salt will be steamed off to flavor the rice).
2. If you can, take the chicken out of the fridge about 30 to 40 minutes before cooking. If using scallion, place in chicken's cavity at this point.
3. Bring to boil about three inches of water inside the steamer pot. Once it comes to boil, put chicken into the insert and place insert in pot. Cover and steam at medium heat for about 33 minutes (about 7 to 10 minutes more if the chicken is starting out cold from the fridge or if you have a larger chicken).
4. Meanwhile, smash and peel the garlic. Peel ginger and slice five 1/4 inch slices of ginger from the length you have. Keep the rest of ginger whole for the next step. Set garlic and sliced ginger aside.
5. To make the chili dipping sauce: finely grate ginger with ginger grater. Set aside into bowl.
6. Peel and slice cucumber or wash lettuce.
7. When the timer for the chicken goes off chicken is cooked, remove insert and place on a large plate. Keep the chicken covered.
8. Place 2 cups of rice into an automatic rice cooker. Add the ginger slices and smashed garlic. Pour the chicken dripping/stock left in pot to the correct level. Cook. Alternatively, place the rice, garlic and ginger in a medium pot. Add three cups (and perhaps 1 to 2 tbs) of stock to the pot. Bring to boil, cover, and simmer over low heat till all the stock has been absorbed.
9. When rice is done, transfer chicken onto platter and surround it with sliced cucumber. If using lettuce, place on separate plate.
10. Back to the dipping sauce: add to the grated ginger, a few squirts of siracha (according to spice tolerance). Add chicken stock to the sauce to make it more runny (if you are out of stock from pot, check for stock left in the cavity of the chicken). Add a tsp of fine sugar. Stir and serve.
We like the cucumber to go with the chicken. Sometimes, we make a package with the lettuce by putting a spoonful of rice, a bit of chicken and dipping sauce into the lettuce and then fold it like an envelop. It sounds quite complicated, but it is really easy a meal to prepare.
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