For a change, it’s not a dessert this time. I generally write less about mains or even savory food for that matter. Although, I like savory rather spicy food, as greatly as I am fond of desserts. And I have many favorites, when it comes to food. In fact, there are few things which I probably don’t prefer to eat, but that too without any strong disliking. I believe, food is a great connection between people, their cultures and their values. It brings human souls together, however diverse and disparate their cultures be. Like this Chinese poached chicken & rice dish which is a fragrant, flavorful and simple recipe which comes from the Hainan province of Southern China. This is an adaptation from famous Australian-Chinese chef Kylie Kwong, which I got to see on TV sometime back on one of her shows. I got really impressed by how simple and traditional it looked, to which I felt really connected. All those traditional recipes which are easy to recreate at home, become my instant favorite for the reason that you get maximum flavor with a very little fuss. Amazingly, this one also created wonders. The entire house smelled amazing with the fragrant ginger and spring onion broth, in which chicken was poached. And the same stock is used to cook rice too, even more better. I drool over rice preparations in broth, like we have yakhni for biryanis. This is traditionally served with some green salad, ginger and garlic chili sauce and the poaching broth by the side. So truly speaking, it’s a bowl full of healthy, flavorful goodness and the comfort.
- 1 whole skin-less chicken, around 1kg
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 5 cm fresh ginger, thinly sliced
- 1 garlic bulb, smashed
- 4 spring onions
- Salt, to taste
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 5 cm fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 cup long grain rice
- 8 red chilies
- 5 garlic cloves
- 5 cm fresh ginger
- 2 tbsp lime juice, plus extra to taste
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- Soy sauce, salt and sugar to taste
- Rub the chicken with salt and sesame oil outside and inside the cavity. Put ginger, garlic and spring onions in the cavity of the chicken. Place chicken in a large stock pot and cover with cold water. Bring the stockpot to boil and then cover and simmer the chicken for 15 minutes. Put pot off the flame and let chicken steep into the poaching liquid, covered in stockpot for at least 2 hours.
- Take the chicken out of the liquid and separate the flesh from bones, when cooled enough to handle. Reserve the chicken flesh to be served later. Put all the bones back into the poaching liquid and let it boil and reduce to half to make a stock. Taste, season and strain.
- Heat oil in a wok, add ginger and garlic and let them fry for 2 minutes. Add the rice, cover with 2 cups of prepared chicken broth. Bring it to boil and then cook gently for 15 minutes, covered, until rice is tender and all the liquid is absorbed.
- Put all the ingredients along with 1/2 cup of prepared chicken broth in a food processor and whizz to make a fine paste. Adjust the seasoning, soy sauce and lime juice, as needed.
- To serve, chop the reserved chicken meat and arrange in a bowl with cooked rice. Serve with a simple salad of tomatoes and cucumber, chili sauce and the remaining chicken broth by the side.
Wow your food is amazing and your photos as well!