How to Make: Hainan Chicken Rice-海南雞飯 (Hainan Zi Fan) Mother's Recipe

Today is a special day. My mother cooked her absolutely delicious Hainan Chicken Rice pronounced Hainan Zi Fan (海南雞飯)! It's my favourite meal from my mother! Hainan Chicken Rice originated from the Island of Hainan, China. However, it is also closely associated with Singaporean cuisine. In Vancouver, near where I'm from, it is commonly sold at fast food restaurants in shopping malls, selling usually at $6.99-$7.99 CAD a set. The chicken is slowly poached in water and salt which makes the meat especially the breast incredibly tender. The rice is then made from the leftover stock of the chicken and fat, making the rice rich, fragrant and absolutely delicious. But you can't have Hainan Chicken Rice with out the onion-y ginger oil sauce! That is the best part!
This dish is not the fastest dish to make, but it is easy if you're organised.
and... the best thing is, it's relatively inexpensive to make!

Hainan Chicken Rice Mother's Recipe
Hainan Zi Fan 海南雞飯
Yields- 4-6 servings
Preparation Time- 30 minutes
Cooking time- 1 hour and 30 minutes

Ingredients:

For Chicken:
One whole, cleaned Chicken
Water
50 grams of Ginger cut into 1 inch chunks
1 1/2 tbsp of salt

For Rice
2 1/2 cups (can be any sized cup) of uncooked rice (preferably Medium grain or long grain Jasmine rice)
50 grams of Ginger
8 to 10 whole garlic cloves

Ginger-Onion Sauce
75 grams of Ginger
8 (about 75 grams) Green Onion
125 mL of Oil, (Olive oil is good!)
1 1/2 tsp of salt


Preparation:

Chicken:
Be sure that the whole chicken is clean, and rinse under water.

Rice:
Wash the rice, and cut the ginger into thin long strips. Peel the garlic cloves.

Sauce:
Grate or chop the ginger very thinly. Chop the green onion.

Top Right- Finely chopped/grated ginger, Bottom Left- Chopped Green onion, Bottom Left- Sliced ginger Top Left- Garlic

Let's Cook!

1.) Place the chicken in a large pot breast side down, and fill with water until it barely covers the top of the chicken. If the legs stick out, it is okay.

2.) Add in salt and ginger.

3.) Turn the stove on at Medium heat, and allow it to boil for 1 hour until fully cooked. Skim the foam which appears on top of the water with a strainer and discard.

4.) Pull the chicken out and place it on a plate to cool. Do not throw away the liquid.

5.) Pour the liquid under a strainer to remove any impurities.

Allo Chicken!

Rice:
6.) Rinse and drain the rice under cold water three times.

7.) Add in the 2 3/4 cups of the strained Chicken liquid to the rice. (Be sure to use the same measuring cup when measuring the liquid.)

8.) Place the sliced ginger and garlic on top of the rice and turn the rice cooker on!

If using a rice cooker, stop here! If not, then continue down!

9.) If not using a rice cooker, place it in a pot with a tight lid cover. Bring it to a boil on medium heat.

10.) When it is boiling, turn it on to high heat for 1 min.

11.) After 1 min, turn it back down to medium heat and let it simmer for 5 min.

12.) After 5 min on medium heat, turn it down to low heat for 10 min. Do not peak during those times.

Step 7, Add Chicken Liquid to Rice

Step 8, Add Ginger and Garlic

Sauce:

13.) Set the stove to low heat, and add in the oil.

14.) When the oil is slightly warmed (2 min), add in the ginger and green onion.

15.) Let it simmer for 3 min until the ginger and green onion has slightly wilted.

16.) Add in the salt, and pour into a bowl to serve with the chicken.

The Sauce!

To put it all together:
17.) Carve the chicken into slices.

18.) Remove the ginger from the rice and serve with the chicken. Don't worry about the garlic, it will be very soft and tender inside the rice!

Removing the ginger 

19.) Pour some of the sauce on top of the chicken!

Voila! Bon à petite!

Hope you enjoy!

Yumsters!

Doesn't that look good?