Hainanese Chicken Rice Recipe

Hainanese Chicken Rice Recipe
Serves 4

Ingredients:

For the rice

3 cups uncooked washed rice
5 tbsp vegetable oil
4 cloves finely chopped garlic
4 finely chopped shallots
2 + 1/2 cups + 2 tbsp chicken broth
4-6 blades of pandan leave (screwpine leaves)
1 small thumb of ginger, cleaned and bruised
1 tbsp of the garlic and shallot oil
70g chicken fats
1+ 1/2 tsp salt, to taste

For the chicken

1 whole chicken, preferably free range organic chicken
1 small thumb of ginger, cleaned and bruised
5-6 stalks of scallion, washed
10 bowls chicken stock, adjust accordingly
4 blades of pandan leaves (screwpine leaves)
1 carrot, roughly chopped
2 + 1 tsp of salt

10 bowls of cold water

1 cucumber, peeled, halved and sliced diagonally

For the sauce

2 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tbsp chicken broth
3 tsp sesame oil
3 tsp garlic and shallot oil

For chicken rice chilli sauce

90g red chilies (you may add in some bird’s eye chili)
15g garlic
50g ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
50ml chicken broth
60ml lime juice, to taste

To garnish

few sprigs of cilantro

Method:

For the chicken

1. Wash chicken, drain well, stuff ginger and scallion into the chicken’s cavity. Using 2 tsp of salt as scrub, rub the salt all over the chicken for smooth looking skin.
2. In a not too large stockpot which fits the chicken perfectly, boil the chicken stock (enough to cover the whole chicken) together with pandan leaves, carrot and salt.

3. Submerge the whole chicken, breast side down in the boiling water for 35-45 minutes depending on the size of the chicken. Lower the heat to gentle simmer immediately.
4. When chicken is cooked, remove chicken and plunge it into prepared cold water at once for 10 minutes. Keep the chicken broth** for later use.
5. Drain the chicken, discard ginger and scallion from the cavity and set it aside to cool before chopping it neatly into desired serving size.
For the rice

1. Heat oil in wok, fry chopped shallots and garlic till fragrant and golden in colour. Add rice and stir well. Transfer the rice mixture to rice cooker.
2. Once transferred, add chicken broth, pandan leaves, ginger, garlic and shallot oil, chicken fats and salt into rice mixture. Cook according to rice cooker’s manual instruction.

To prepare chicken rice

1. Line a serving plate with cucumber slices.
2. Arrange chicken pieces on top, pour in the prepared sauce before garnishing with cilantro.
3. Serve with chicken rice, side soup and chicken rice chili sauce.

**Any left over chicken broth can be served as side soup, garnish with cilantro or chopped scallions. I like my soup with fish balls. ;)

Cook’s Note:

Never let the Great-Wall-of-China-long list of ingredients and methods intimidate you. It’s really not as tough or scary as it seems + the ingredients can be easily attainable almost everywhere and importantly, your effort will be extremely well paid off after.

http://rasamalaysia.com/chicken-rice/2/

Making of Spring Roll (Popiah)

Mum’s home cook Popiah…

薄餅皮) is a soft, thin paper-like crepe

As a fresh spring roll, the popiah skin itself is not fried. In Singapore and Malaysia, especially in non-halal settings, will add fried pork lard.

Ingredients:
fresh-
lettuce
coriander leaves
cucumber

ready or prepared:
popiah skin
shallots (sliced thinly and fry until crispy)
peanut sugar (crushed peanut + sugar)
chilli sauce
sweet chilli sauce (chopped chilli padi + sugar + water)
sweet sauce

Need to cook:
boil or fry
    prawn
    french bean
    bean sprout (tailed and blanched)

Fry
    4 eggs -(beaten) salt, white and black pepper to taste
    bean curd (cut into fine slivers)

turnip (sengkuang) (shredded)
dried shrimp (chopped)
carrot (shredded)

For 5 to 7 people

Prepare of Popiah cooked filling:
2 heads of garlic, finely minced
6 lbs, 1 jicama, shredded, either with a sharp knife or using a box grater (the large hole grater)
1 large carrots, shredded
1 lb small shrimp,
1 lb green cabbage, finely shredded (about one small head)
1 lb firm tofu (taukwa), julienned fine
1 1/2 lbs belly pork or pork picnic, parboiled to harden well enough to julienne fine
1 lb green beans, chopped  
4 Tbsp brown bean sauce (taucheong)
salt to taste
chicken bouillon to taste
Vegetable oil for stir-frying

Method:
For the cooked filling:

1. Heat a little oil (about 1 tsp) in your wok, and fry the taukwa until mostly dry. Remove and set aside.

2. Make sure to set aside the stock you have made from boiling the shrimp shells and the pork.

3. Heat the wok with a little bit more oil (about 1-2 tsps). Add 1 tsp minced garlic, and stirfy the shredded carrots briefly (1-2 minutes). Transfer carrots to a large stock pot.

4. Repeat #3 with the green beans, then the cabbage, then the jicama, frying each vegetable briefly and individually before adding to the large stock pot.

5. Add more oil and about three times more garlic (3 tsps), then add brown bean sauce and stirfry for about 1-2 minutes being careful not to burn it. Keep your fire on medium to low heat. When it starts to smell aromatic, add the julienned pork and stirfry until almost cooked. When the pork is almost done, add the shrimp. Cook until shrimp is just done. Transfer to the large stock pot with the vegetables.

6. Cook all the vegetables and meats in the pot for about 10 minutes over medium low heat, stirring to mix all the ingredients.

7. Add taukwa to the mix. Cook the mixture for about 30 minutes, adding about 1/2 cup of the reserved shrimp and pork stock. After cooking for 30 minutes, season with salt and chicken bouillon to taste. Don’t add seasonings till the mixture has had a chance to work its magic and impart its many flavors. That way, you won’t end up overseasoning in the beginning.

8. Once you have added your salt and chicken bouillon, simmer for 5 more minutes or until the flavors are all mixed well and the vegetables are tender.

Additional choice fillings:
2 chinese sausage (lup cheong), halved and sliced thin
1 cucumber, julienned (if very seedy, remove seeds then julienne)
4 eggs, boiled and chopped
1/2-1 lb large shrimp, boiled in shell, then peeled and halved, shell reserved for stock
1 lbs peanuts, roasted, cooled and ground fine
2 heads Green leaf lettuce, leaves individually picked and washed clean
1/2 lb beansprouts, tips picked off (if very diligent), and blanched

Condiments:
Minced garlic (whatever is not used up in the filling can be used here)
Chilli sauce (made by blending 10-15 large red chillies of moderate heat level or if you can tolerate spice, add spicier chillies)
Hoisin or sweet flour sauce

Popiah skin

For the choice fillings and condiments:

1. Place each ingredient into small serving bowls (and replenish as they run out)