Quick and easy

“It’s main ingredients consist of chicken, chicken bone stock and rice. A dish adapted from early Chinese immigrants originally from the Hainan province in southern China. It is considered one of the national dishes of Singapore. Hainanese chicken rice most commonly associated with Malaysian, Hainanese and Singaporean cuisines, although it is also popular in Thailandand Vietnam.”

Hainanese chicken rice is one of my all time favourite dishes, I personally think this dish represents Singapore. Having cooked this dish for all the kitchen staff during my internship at Roux at the Landau. For full video tutorial, visit my Youtube channel.

You will need:

Soup:
1 whole chicken
1 ginger
2-3 chillies
1 whole garlic clove
2 celery sticks
2 carrots
2 pandan leaves
2 spring onion
1 tablespoon chicken stock
1-2 tablespoons taiwan shao hsing wine
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon hainanese chicken rice paste
1 teaspoon white pepper

Rice:
Stock from soup
1 ginger
1 tablespoon of hainanese chicken rice
1-2 pandan leaves

Chicken liver:
A packet of liver
1-2 tablespoon habal sweet soya bean sauce

Pak choi:
A bunch of pak choi
1-2 tablespoons oyster sauce

Ginger sauce:
1 ginger
5-6 garlic cloves
1 1/2 tablespoon lime
2 tablespoon chicken stock
Salt

Chilli sauce:
10 chillies
2 garlic cloves
1 1/2 tablespoon lime
Salt

Garnish:
Spring shallot
Coriander leaves
Sliced cucumber
Kecap manis (also known as sweet soya sauce)

SOUP – When preparing the soup, add cold water half way up and place your whole chicken into a big pot. Skin a ginger and add it into the water along with a whole garlic clove and fresh chillies, bring the water to a boil then into a medium to low heat. Place the lid to allow the chicken to become tender and juicy. Thoroughly skim the impurities before adding the taiwan shao hsing wine, sesame oil, hainanese chicken rice paste, chopped vegetables, panda leaf, spring onion and chicken stock; seasoned with white pepper. Leave it to simmer for a good 45 minutes to an hour, this allows the chicken to cook.

RICE – Making the rice in a rice cooker, add the rice and a couple of ladles of the hainanese soup that you’ve made. Add a skinned ginger, hainanese chicken rice paste and a pandan leaf.

CHICKEN – Once the chicken is cooked, take it out of the soup and leave it to cool in a dish. Cut the chicken into sliced bite-sized pieces and add 1-2 tablespoons of soya sauce, garnished with spring shallots and coriander leaves.

CHICKEN LIVER – Add cold water into a pot and start to boil then simmer the liver for 10-15 minutes. Drain the water and garnish the chicken live with habal sweet soya bean sauce and coriander leaves.

PAK CHOI – Preparing pak choi is very quick and easy and best to prepare it before you’re ready to serve yourself. Boil the pak choi for 2 minutes, drain the water and garnish it with oyster sauce and spring shallots.

GINGER SAUCE – Pound the ginger and garlic to a paste in a mortar (or blend in a food processor) and add the lime juice, salt and chicken stock.

CHILLI SAUCE – Pound or blend the chilli, garlic and ginger till it becomes a paste. Add garlic and lime juice and salt to taste.

Prepare some thinly sliced cucumbers, a simple side salad with rocket with cucumber and cherry tomatoes with balsamic dressing; served with chicken, rice, chilli sauce, ginger sauce, kecap manis (sweet soya sauce), pak choi, chicken liver, with a bowl of soup.