Hainanese Chicken Rice Recipe

Step 1

Boil a large pot of water. In the meantime, clean the chicken by exfoliating with kosher or coarse salt. Rinse chicken well, inside and outside.

Step 2

PRE-BOIL CHICKEN: When water is at a hard boil, add the chicken. Return to hard boil, let scum come to the surface. Boil for 5 minutes. Discard all the water, including the scum.

Step 3

Refill pot with clean water to cover the chicken by 1-inch, and add in the garlic, green onion and ginger. Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, then immediately turn the heat to low to keep a simmer. Cook for about 30 minutes more (less if you're using a smaller chicken). Check for doneness by sticking a chopstick into the flesh under the leg and see if the juices run clear or insert a thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh not touching bone. It should read 160F. The chicken will continue to cook to 165F during rest.

Step 4

When the chicken is cooked through, turn off the heat and remove the pot from the burner. Immediately lift and transfer the chicken into a bath of ice water to cool. The quick cooling will stop the cooking process, keeping the meat soft and tender, and giving the skin a lovely firm texture. After cooling, pat the chicken dry with paper towels and rub the sesame oil all over the chicken. This will help prevent the chicken from drying out.

Step 5

Discard the garlic, ginger and green onion. Season the soup with salt to taste.

Step 6

Place rice into a large bowl, and fill with water. Use your hands to swish the water around, cleaning the rice. Tilt bowl to discard water, keeping the rice in the bowl Repeat 3 more times, until water is less cloudy.

Step 7

In a wok or pot, heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add the ginger, shallots and the garlic and fry until your kitchen smells like heaven. Be careful not to burn the aromatics! Add in your drained rice and stir to coat, cook for an additional minute. Add the sesame oil, mix well.

Step 8

Add 2 cups of your reserved poaching broth and bring to a boil. Immediately turn the heat down to low, cover the pot and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit (with lid still on) for 5-10 minutes more.

Step 9

While the rice is cooking, make the sauces and carve the chicken for serving.

Step 10

To make the chili sauce: Blend your chili sauce ingredients in a blender until smooth and bright red.

Step 11

To make the ginger garlic sauce: In a small saucepan, heat the cooking oil until very hot, when you start seeing wisps of smoke. Turn off heat. Immediately add garlic and ginger and let it sizzle for a few seconds. Once it settles, stir in salt and vinegar.