Poached Hainanese Chicken with Fragrant Rice and Chili Sauce

What you need

• 1 whole chicken, about 1.6 kg (3 1/2 lb)
• 1 tbsp salt, plus more to taste
• 60 g (2 oz) fresh ginger, half thinly sliced, half finely minced
• 6 scallions, 4 left whole, 2 finely chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 370 g (2 cups) jasmine rice
• 2 pandan leaves, tied in a knot
• 3 tbsp neutral oil
• 4 fresh red chili peppers, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp lime juice, or calamansi juice
• 1 tsp sugar
• 3 tbsp sweet soy sauce, thick and dark
• 1 cucumber, sliced
• 1 handful coriander leaves

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Pull the loose fat from the chicken's cavity, chop it small and set it aside.

2. 2

   Pat the chicken dry and rub 2 tsp of the salt over the skin. Stuff the sliced ginger and the 4 whole scallions into the cavity.

3. 3

   Put the chicken breast side up in a snug pot, add cold water to cover by 2 cm (1 in) and the remaining 1 tsp salt. Heat on high until it just boils, then lift off any scum.

4. 4

   Turn the heat to the lowest setting, cover and poach at a bare simmer until the thickest part of the thigh reads 74 °C (165 °F), 35-40 min.

5. 5

   Fill a large bowl with ice water. Lift out the chicken, tipping the liquid in the cavity back into the pot, and plunge it into the ice water for 10 min, turning once.

6. 6

   Drain the chicken, pat it dry and rub it all over with the sesame oil. Keep the poaching liquid hot.

7. 7

   Rinse the rice in several changes of water until it runs almost clear, then drain well.

8. 8

   In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, cook the chopped chicken fat until it melts and the bits turn golden, 4-5 min.

9. 9

   Add 4 cloves of the garlic and half of the minced ginger and stir until fragrant, about 1 min.

10. 10

    Add the rice and stir for 2-3 min until every grain is glossy.

11. 11

    Pour in 550 ml (2 1/3 cups) of the poaching liquid, add the pandan and 1/2 tsp salt and bring to a boil. Cover, cook on the lowest heat for 15 min, then leave off the heat with the lid on for 10 min.

12. 12

    For the ginger sauce, put the chopped scallions, the rest of the minced ginger and a pinch of salt in a heatproof bowl. Heat the neutral oil until it shimmers and just starts to smoke, then pour it over and stir.

13. 13

    For the chili sauce, blend the chili peppers, the remaining 2 garlic cloves, the lime juice, sugar, a pinch of salt and 3 tbsp of the poaching liquid to a coarse paste.

14. 14

    Season the remaining poaching liquid with salt to serve as a clear soup.

15. 15

    Cut the chicken into serving pieces and lay them over the cucumber on a platter. Drizzle with the sweet soy sauce and scatter with coriander.

16. 16

    Serve with the rice, both sauces and small bowls of the soup.

Imported from poshjournal.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.