Using a rice cooker is the key to getting the famously deep, savory flavor of Hainanese chicken without having to poach a whole bird. This delicious chicken-and-rice dish is named for Hainan, China’s southernmost province, but is popular throughout Asia and especially in Singapore, where it’s considered the national dish. We’ve streamlined it to make it perfect for weeknight meals. Skinless, boneless thighs are seared along with aromatics and jasmine rice, then everything is transferred to a rice cooker to cook together, infusing every bite with flavor. While the rice cooks, make the dish’s signature scallion-ginger sauce and seasoned soy sauce to spoon over the finished dish. A garnish of refreshing cucumber slices completes the meal.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 30 min |
| Active: | 50 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2 1/2 pounds)
- Kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups jasmine rice
- Neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil, as needed
- 2 medium shallots, minced
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 3 scallions, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons finely minced ginger
- Kosher salt
- 1/4 cup neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder, optional
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- Sliced cucumber, for serving
- Chili garlic sauce, such as sambal
Instructions
- For the chicken and rice: Trim off any pieces of fat from the chicken thighs and set the fat aside. Cut the thighs into 1-inch-thick slices. Season the chicken all over with 1 teaspoon salt and massage the salt into the chicken until it dissolves. Set aside.
- Place the rice in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse until the water runs clear. Set aside to drain out as much water as possible.
- Place the chicken fat in a cold large stainless-steel skillet and render the fat over low heat until the fat melts and the pieces shrink and start to brown, about 8 minutes. Measure out 3 tablespoons of fat from the skillet; pour off any excess and remove any pieces of meat. (If you have less than 3 tablespoons fat, add enough neutral oil to measure 3 tablespoons.)
- Pour the chicken fat back into the skillet and increase the heat to medium. Working in 2 or 3 batches, sear the chicken pieces until golden-brown, flipping halfway, about 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to another bowl and repeat until all the chicken is browned, adding more oil to the pan if needed. Set aside.
- In the same skillet the chicken cooked in, heat 1 tablespoon oil and add the shallots. Cook, stirring, until the shallots are translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Shake the rice to remove any remaining water and add it to the shallot-garlic mixture. Stir to coat the grains of rice with fat. Transfer the rice mixture to a programmable locking 10-cup rice cooker. Add 1 3/4 cups cold water to the skillet and scrape up any brown bits on the bottom. Add the water to the rice cooker. Mix the chicken and rice together until evenly distributed. Close the lid, press the white rice button and leave to cook until the alarm sounds. Once finished, leave the rice in the cooker to rest for at least 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, for the scallion-ginger sauce: Mix the scallions, ginger and 1 teaspoon salt together in a heatproof bowl. Rinse and wipe out the skillet. Heat the oil over medium heat until it starts to smoke, about 3 minutes. Pour the hot oil over the scallion mixture and stir until combined. Stir in the sugar, white pepper and bouillon powder if using. Set aside.
- For the seasoned soy sauce: Mix the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil with 2 tablespoons water together in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup until the sugar dissolves. Set aside.
- For serving: Divide the chicken and rice among 4 plates, garnish with cucumber slices and enjoy with the scallion-ginger sauce, seasoned soy sauce and chili garlic sauce.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 689 |
| Total Fat | 28 g |
| Saturated Fat | 4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 66 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 4 g |
| Protein | 41 g |
| Cholesterol | 160 mg |
| Sodium | 1184 mg |