Chicken Rice is an all time favourite. Even though it might seem tedious with so many steps involved, believe me, everything is worthwhile once you have tasted it.The succulent chicken with a dash of home made chilli sauce, the crispy and refreshing cucumber salad, and the fragrant rice make this a perfect meal ideal for all occasions. When i was studying oversea, this is one of our favourite dish, and my housemate Rouven never got bored of eating it.
Give yourself ample time to prepare this, preferably over the weekend when you have extra time to spare in the kitchen and enjoy the fun of cooking!
Preparing the Chicken
Ingredients A
2-3 Chicken Thigh*
1 inch Ginger
5 cloves Garlic (do not peel of the skin)
2 Scallion a.k.a Spring Onion
1 tbsp Wolfberry** (optional)
1 tbsp Chicken Powder
salt and paper to taste
* For those opting for a healthier option, you can substitute chicken thigh with chicken breast.
** Wolfberry 枸杞 is a widely used ingredient in chinese cooking. It gives an extra sweetness to the soup and is said to be good for the vision. You can find them in most asian stores.
Ingredients B
1 tbsp Sugar
1 tbsp Oyster Sauce
1 tbsp Light Soya Sauce
1 tbsp Fish Sauce*
1 tbsp Shao Xing Wine (optional)
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1/2 cup Chicken Stock**
* If you can't find fish sauce, substitute it with light soya sauce. Hence, instead of using 1 tbsp light soya sauce and 1 tbsp fish sauce, use 2 tbsp of light soya sauce.
**Chicken stock - The soup from boiling the chicken is used as Chicken Stock. Use it while it is still warm to mix all ingredients B.
1. Put the chicken into a big pot and add in tap water. Make sure the chicken is fully submerged in the water. Add in the rest of ingredients A.
2. Turn on the fire and bring the water to boil. Once the water is boiling, immediately turn off the fire and cover the pot with lid. Let it stand for at least 1 hour. (this ensures the chickens are properly cooked)
3. Dish up the chicken and soak in iced water for 15 minutes. Keep the soup in the pot for use as Chicken Stock.
4.By now, the chicken will be soft and tender. You can easily de-bone the chicken before cutting them into pieces.
5. Splash the mixture of Ingredients B onto the chicken.
Preparing the Chilli Dipping Sauce
No chicken rice is perfect without a good dipping sauce. And here's how to prepare one nice and easy homemade dipping sauce. Prepare extra and you can keep it in the fridge. It goes well with other dishes too.
Ingredients
5 Chilli (add more if you like)
1 inch Ginger
3-5 cloves Garlic
3 tbsp Light Soya Sauce
1 tbsp Fish Sauce (can be substituted with light soya sauce)
1 tbsp Sweet Soy Sauce
1 tsp Sesame Oil
5 tbsp Chicken Stock
1. Blend chilli, ginger and garlic.
2. Add in the rest of the ingredients. That's it!
Preparing the Crispy Cucumber Salad
This is a great appetizer that goes along well with the chicken rice. The sweet and sourness of the salad, with a tinge of spiciness give an extra boost to the savoury taste of the chicken rice.
For a better result, prepare this salad a day before.
Ingredients
2 Cucumber
1/2 Carrot
1 Chilli
some Pineapple cubes
3-5 tbsp Sugar
1 tbsp salt
1/2 cup Vinegar
dash of sesame oil
1. Cut the cucumber into half. Remove the seed. Slice into thin pieces. (Do not peel the skin)
2. Cut the carrot into thin strips.
3. Mix the cucumber and carrot with sugar, salt, vinegar and sesame oil in a bowl. Keep in the fridge overnight.
4. Before use, pour off the excess water in the bowl. Give the cucumber an extra squeeze to remove any water remaining. This will give the cucumber a crispy texture.
5. Add in the chilli (cut into thin slices) and pineapple cubes.
Preparing the Rice
And finally, after a long day of preparing, we have reached the final step. Getting the rice cooked.
Ingredients
Rice
Chicken Stock
Pandan leaves (optional)
Cook the rice using the chicken stock. The will give the rice the added flavours.
Enjoy the meal!
p/s Of course, cooking is not a formula. You don't have to follow the ingredients strictly. Adjust the flavours according to your personal liking.
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