When in Singapore…

Eat Haianese Chicken rice. Actually, that goes for when you’re in Malaysia or Melbourne, Australia too. For me, Haianese Chicken Rice is the definition of comfort food. The elements seem simple enough, but the flavors are simply amazing. My aunt used to babysit my sister and I when we lived in Melbourne. She had lived in Singapore for a long time and had perfected the signature dishes of the region. To this day, the smell of this dish takes me right back to childhood. That’s why when Ry and I visited Singapore and Malaysia a few years ago, I ordered the chicken rice at pretty much every hawker centre we went to. It’s a universally loved flavor profile, and I love making it for friends and family—it’s pretty and hearty and in a small way it’s part of who I am. Selamat makan! <enjoy your meal>

Haianese Chicken Rice

Serves 10

Haianese Chicken

8 Chicken leg quarters (skin on), rinsed

Ginger, peeled cut into 4 one-inch pieces

8 cloves Garlic, peeled

1 Cup chopped spring onions

2 teaspoons salt

Haianese Chicken Rice

5 Cups long grain rice

Ginger, peeled cut into 3 one-inch pieces

4 Garlic cloves

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons chicken fat, skimmed from the top of the cooled stock

5-6 Cups chicken stock (according to the rice cooking instructions)

2 Pandan leaves (also known as screw pine leaves)

Brown Sauce

3 tablespoons Garlic oil (sauté 4 crushed pieces of garlic in vegetable oil to make garlic oil)

3 teaspoons sesame oil

¾ Cup Soy Sauce (use gluten free soy sauce for those with gluten intolerance)

3 tablespoons sugar

½ Cup chicken stock (from the Haianese chicken you cooked)

1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch

Garnish

Cucumber

Spring Onions

Sambal Oelek

Brown Sauce (from above)

Directions

1. Fill a large pot up with water (enough to cover the chicken). Do not place the chicken in the pot yet.
2. Place the pieces of ginger into the water, 8 garlic cloves, and spring onions in the water. Add in the salt.
3. Bring the pot of water to a boil, then turn of the heat, add the chicken, and cover with a lid.
4. Keeping the pot covered with a lid, bring the water to a boil again on low heat (level 3). Once the water has come to a boil, keep the lid on and turn off the heat. Leave the chicken in the pot to stand in the water for 30 minutes.
5. After 30 minutes, bring the pot of water to a boil at low heat. After it comes to a boil, turn the heat off and allow the chicken to stand in the water with the lid on for another 30 minutes.
6. Take the lid off and carefully remove the chicken from the pot. Remove the pot of chicken stock from the stove. Place the cooked chicken on a plate. Allow the chicken and the chicken stock to cool down. Once cooled, pat the chicken dry. Place in a sealed container and refrigerate. 
   
7. Add all of the rice ingredients to a rice cooker and cook.
8. While the rice is cooking, prepare the brown sauce for the chicken. Combine all the sauce ingredients except the corn starch in a small saucepan and cook on low heat, stirring until all of the sugar has dissolved. In a separate bowl, mix the cornstarch with a tablespoon of cold water. Stir the cornstarch and water into a thin paste. Add the corn starch paste to the brown sauce and whisk it until the cornstarch has completely incorporated (no lumps). Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow it to cool down.
   
9. Turn on the broiler in your oven. Remove the chicken from the fridge.
10. Pat the chicken dry, and place it on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil. Brush on some of the brown sauce onto the chicken. Place the baking sheet in the oven. Watch the chicken carefully. You only want to crisp and brown the chicken.
11. Once the rice is done cooking, plate the meal. Garnish with cucumber, spring onions, the brown sauce, and sambal oelek.
    

Photo Credits: KiwiConfections

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