Hainanese Chicken Rice (Savoy Chicken)

          As I told before, every foods have a unique characteristic. Characteristic is could be everything. Taste, Look, or even a Smell. I like Chinese foods, I often go to Chinese restaurant for feeding my appetite. Chinese foods are quite different from Indonesian cuisines. Chinese foods are likely more savory than the Indonesian cuisines. But, Indonesian has more spices that sometimes aren’t found in it.  One of my favorite Chinese food is Hainanese Chicken Rice.

          Hainanese chicken rice is 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 Thailand and Vietnam. It is based on a well-known Hainanese dish called Wenchang chicken (文昌雞), due to its adoption by the Hainanese overseas Chinese population in the Nanyang area (present-day Southeast Asia).

Catherine Ling of CNN describes Hainanese chicken rice as one of the "40 Singapore foods we can't live without". It also listed at number 45 on World's 50 most delicious foods complied by CNN Go in 2011. In Indonesia, Chicken rice is available in many Chinese Restaurant. I have eaten it in Imperial Kitchen Restaurant, one of my favorite restaurant in my city.

The taste of Hainanese Chicken Rice is very tasty. I can find happiness every spoon of it. Hainanese Chicken is made of boiled chicken in a pork or chicken bone stock. Due to majority of Muslim in Indonesia, many restaurants make it from chicken bone stock. It serves with Hainan rice which is made of rice and stock from chicken (including other spices). Vegetable and sauce usually is completed the dish.

A lot of effort goes into the preparation of this flavourful dish, with chefs slowly steaming or blanching the chicken until it is fully cooked, before immediately soaking it in cold water. This stops the cooking process and ensures that the meat remains tender, and is also why the meat is usually served at room temperature

The chicken is main star of this dish. Chicken is cut and put on the different plate from rice. It is also served with vegetable and chili sauce. Chili sauce is made of birds-eye chilies, ginger, garlic, and etc. The sauce is also made this dish perfectly delicious.

This is Recipe for making this delicious dish. It is quoted from Adam Liaw Website. 

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Serves 4

Preparation: 1 hour Cooking: 50 minutes plus 30 minutes resting

Ingredients

·         1 whole chicken (about 1.5kg), at room temperature

·         5 whole cloves garlic, plus 2 cloves, chopped

·         7 thick slices ginger, unpeeled

·         1 tbsp sesame oil

·         675g jasmine rice

·         1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

·          1 tbsp light soy sauce

·         coriander, sliced cucumber and spring onion, to serve

Chilli Sauce

·         6 red birds-eye chillies

·         2 tbsp grated ginger

·         2 garlic cloves

·         1 tsp caster sugar

·         1/4 tsp sea salt flakes

·         1 tsp lemon juice

Spring onion and ginger oil

·         4 spring onions, thinly sliced

·         2 tbsp grated ginger

·         1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

·         3 tbsp peanut oil

Dressing

·         1 tbsp sesame oil

·         2 tbsp light soy sauce

Step

·      Trim any visible fat from the chicken. Roughly chop the fat and put in a small saucepan. Cook over very low heat for about 1 hour until the liquid fat renders away. Pour off and keep the liquid fat as it pools. (You do not need the crispy pieces of fried fat for this dish, but they are excellent served over cooked noodles.)

·      Meanwhile, put the whole garlic cloves and 5 slices of ginger in the cavity of the chicken and place breast-side down in a large pot. Cover with water and bring to just below a simmer. The water should be steaming well, but not bubbling. Keep the heat at this stage for 20 minutes, then cover the pot and turn off the heat. Leave for 30 minutes, then lift out the chicken, keeping the poaching stock. Brush the chicken skin with sesame oil and wrap with plastic wrap. The chicken should be cooked very lightly, pink inside the bones and with a gelatinous skin.

·     Heat 1 tbsp of the chicken fat in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped garlic and remaining 2 slices of ginger and stir-fry until fragrant. Add the rice and toss until well coated and turning opaque. Add 1.25 litres of the reserved chicken stock, the salt and soy sauce. You can also add a few pandan leaves, tied in a knot (if you have them). Cook in a rice cooker or by your preferred method of cooking rice.

·     To make the chilli sauce, combine chillies, ginger, garlic, sugar and salt in a mortar and pound to a paste. Add the lemon juice and 1-2 tablespoons of hot chicken stock and pound again. Set aside.

·     To make the spring onion and ginger oil, add the spring onion, ginger and salt to a heatproof mortar and pound lightly with the pestle. Heat the oil in a small frying pan until smoking and pour onto the mixture. Once the sizzling stops, combine lightly with the pestle and leave to infuse for a few minutes.

·     To make the dressing, mix the sesame oil and soy sauce with 60ml of the chicken stock. If you have any remaining chicken stock after that, you can season it and add a few onion slices. This can be served as a light broth to accompany the meal.

·     Slice the chicken Chinese-style and pour the dressing over it. Scatter with a little coriander and serve with the rice, condiments, broth and garnishes

This Video is showed how to make Hainanese Chicken Rice