Hainan Whole Chicken and Rice

Step 1

Fill a large stock pot halfway with water, add salt and bring to a boil. While the water is boiling, prepare the chicken. Remove excess fat and set it aside.

Step 2

Stuff the cavity of the chicken loosely, with green onion, ginger and garlic.

Step 3

Once the water reaches a rolling boil, place the chicken into the pot, breast side up. Turn the heat down to low and cover. Do not let the water simmer. It should be still. Let the chicken poach for 50-60 minutes. Place the poached chicken in a large bowl of ice water for about 10 minutes to halt the cooking. Discard the green onion, ginger and garlic. Reserve broth.

Step 4

Meanwhile, place the green onion, ginger and salt into a bowl. In a medium saucepan on medium high heat, heat the oil until you see a whisp of white smoke. Carefully pour it over the green onion and ginger mixture and mix well. Set aside.

Step 5

Turn the heat down to medium and add the chicken fat to the saucepan. Render the chicken fat until you get about 1-2 tablespoons of liquid. If you don’t have 2 tablespoons, add enough vegetable oil to reach approximately 2 tablespoons.

Step 6

Add the garlic and stir-fry for about 30 seconds until fragrant, then add the rice and stir-fry for about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally, making sure it doesn’t burn. Discard the pieces of chicken fat. Add 4 rice cups of the reserved chicken broth to cook the rice.*

Step 7

On medium high heat, bring the rice to a simmer, uncovered. Cover and turn down the heat to low. Cook until rice is tender and no water remains in the saucepan, about 18-20 minutes.

Step 8

Check the bottom of the rice by sticking a rubber spatula down the side of the pot to see. If the bottom of the pot is still wet or if the rice feels wet, turn off the heat and let rest for 5-10 minutes.

Step 9

If the bottom of the pot is dry and the rice is not quite tender, sprinkle about a tablespoon of broth evenly over the top of the rice and cook for another 5-10 minutes.

Step 10

Meanwhile, arrange the cucumber slices on a serving plate. Once the chicken is cool to handle, separate the meat from the bones, slice or shred the chicken and place on top of the cucumber. Sprinkle with 2-3 pinches of ground white pepper.

Step 11

In a small bowl, stir the soy sauce and sesame oil until well mixed. Drizzle the mixture evenly over the chicken. Garnish with cilantro leaves.

Step 12

Serve with rice and green onion mixture on the side.