Hainanese chicken rice is a simple yet delicious dish that consists of tender poached chicken served with fragrant rice and flavorful sauces. It is a cult favorite in Singapore, where it is considered a national dish. It’s so simple, but so delicious at the same time. It’s a classic meal in our house since it does a great job satisfying both little tots and the adults in the house. The nutritious broth is heart warming and makes everything feel just a little bit more cozy. With all the ginger that goes on in this recipe, it’s also a great way to get that extra oomph when energies, spirits, and health need some extra loving. In this blog post, I will show you how to make our version of this dish at home with some easy steps and tips.
Ingredients:
– 1 walking chicken (about 3 to 4 pounds; you can find these at Asian grocery stores; they are leaner, sweeter, and have more texture than conventional chickens)
– 3 to 4 knobs of ginger (depending on how much ginger sauce you want to make), peeled and sliced
– 2 to 3 bunches of scallions, washed (leave one bunch whole and chop the rest)
– 1 large or 3 to 4 small shallots, peeled and minced
– 2 cups of uncooked washed rice
– Salt and optional: mushroom seasoning (a vegan seasoning made from dried mushrooms; you can find it at Asian grocery stores or online; you can also use chicken bouillon or soy sauce instead)
– Neutral oil like vegetable or avocado
– Optional: Ginger fish sauce: 1/4 cup of minced ginger, 4 cloves of minced garlic, 2 to 3 thai peppers (or more if you like it spicy), minced, 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1/4 cup of fish sauce, juice of 1 lime
Directions:
- Wash your chicken and remove some back fat or skin and reserve it for later. You can also cut off the head and feet if you prefer.
- Bring a large pot of water (enough to fully submerge or 75% submerge the chicken) to a boil with a little salt, a bunch of scallions, and a knob’s worth of ginger slices.
- When the water boils, carefully lower the chicken into the water. Let it boil on medium-high for 15 to 20 minutes covered. Occasionally check to remove scum, and if it looks like it’s boiling over, you can open the lid a bit and lower the temperature.
- After 20 minutes, turn off the heat and cover the pot. Let it sit for another 15 to 20 minutes. When you poke the chicken after this, the juices should run clear. If not, bring it to a boil again, turn off the heat, and cover for another 5 minutes or until done.
- Once cooked through, place the chicken in a large ice bath to stop the cooking process. This will also make the skin firm and glossy.
- Once your chicken is cooled down, remove it from the ice bath and place it into the fridge for 1 to 2 hours until the skin is firm. Don’t skip this step, it’s essential :). Once this happens, you can chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces. You can also debone it if you like.
- To make the rice, heat some oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add some chopped chicken fat or skin (or more oil if you don’t have any) and fry until crispy. Remove and set aside for later.
- In the same pot with the oil, add the minced shallots, ginger, and garlic. Saute until fragrant and golden brown.
- Add the rice and stir well to coat with the oil and aromatics. Season with salt and mushroom seasoning (or your preferred seasoning) to taste.
- Add enough chicken broth to cover the rice by about an inch. If you have a rice cooker, you’re set to go, but if not you can bring everything to a boil then lower the heat and simmer covered until the rice is cooked and fluffy, about 15 to 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and keep warm.
- To make the ginger sauce, blend or mash some ginger slices with some salt and oil until smooth. You can also add some hot water to thin it out if you like.
- To make the optional ginger fish sauce, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and stir well until the sugar dissolves. Adjust the taste according to your preference.
- To serve, arrange the chicken pieces on a large platter and garnish with some chopped scallions and fried chicken fat or skin. Serve with the rice, ginger sauce, ginger fish sauce (if using), and some cucumber slices or salad on the side. Enjoy!
Tips and variations:
– You can also use chicken parts instead of a whole chicken if you prefer. Just adjust the cooking time accordingly.
– You can also use a pressure cooker or an instant pot to cook the chicken faster and more evenly.
– You can also make a soup with the leftover chicken broth by adding some salt, pepper, and scallions. You can also add some noodles or vegetables if you like. We like sipping it with our rice and when the rice runs out, we throw in glass noodles/bean thread noodles to make a different type of dish 🙂
– You can also try other sauces for the chicken, such as soy sauce, chili sauce, or vinegar sauce.
I hope you razzle dazzle your family and dinner guests with this Singaporean Hainanese chicken rice. It is one of our favorite dishes to make at home and it satisfies all my chicken cravings– (sorry Clucky!) I think we could eat this every week actually…and it’s pretty healthy to boot! I’ll have to warn you though, once you make your epic Singaporean Hainanese Chicken at home, you’re probably going to be disappointed everywhere else you try it if you live in the states. Please let me know when you try out this cult favorite at home, and you know, inadvertently win at life. I would love to hear from you!