🍗⭐ Premium

Riz au poulet hainanais

Name: Riz au poulet hainanais
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: CN
Ingredients: 1.5 kg whole chicken, preferably free-range; 3 litres water, or enough to fully submerge the chicken; 40 g fresh ginger, sliced (for poaching); 4 stalks scallions, bruised (for poaching); 4 cloves garlic, smashed (for poaching); 2 tbsp coarse salt, for rubbing the chicken; 1 tbsp salt, for the poaching water; handful ice cubes, for the ice bath; 400 g jasmine rice, rinsed until the water runs clear; 3 tbsp rendered chicken fat, skimmed from the poaching broth (or neutral oil); 3 cloves garlic, minced (for the rice); 2 shallots, minced (for the rice); 15 g fresh ginger, minced (for the rice); 1 pandan leaf, tied in a knot (optional); 500 ml reserved poaching stock (for the rice); 1/2 tsp salt (for the rice); 50 g fresh ginger, peeled (for the ginger-scallion sauce); 3 stalks scallions, finely chopped (for the ginger-scallion sauce); 3 tbsp neutral vegetable oil, hot (for the ginger-scallion sauce); 1/2 tsp salt (for the ginger-scallion sauce); 4 red chillies (such as Thai or Fresno), roughly chopped (for the chilli sauce); 2 cloves garlic (for the chilli sauce); 15 g fresh ginger (for the chilli sauce); 2 tbsp lime juice; 1 tbsp sugar; 2 tbsp reserved poaching stock (for the chilli sauce); 1/4 tsp salt (for the chilli sauce); 2 tbsp light soy sauce; 1 tsp dark soy sauce; 1 tsp sesame oil

30m

Prépa

60m

Cuisson

Portions

Moyen

Difficulté

Poulet poché tout en douceur, servi sur un riz cuit dans son propre gras et bouillon, avec sauces gingembre-ciboule et piment.

#chinese#hainanese#chicken-rice#poached-chicken#asian-comfort-food#rice

Portions

4portions

Ingrédients

Nutrition

calories650

protein42g

carbs55g

fat28g

fiber2g

Par portion

Étapes

Season the chicken

Rub the whole chicken all over, inside and out, with the coarse salt. Rinse well under cold running water and pat completely dry. This firms the skin and seasons the meat from the inside out before it ever touches the pot.

1.5 kg whole chicken
2 tbsp coarse salt

✅ C'est prêt quand : the skin feels dry and slightly taut, with no raw salt visible

Poach gently

Put the chicken in a pot just big enough to hold it snugly and add water to cover, along with the ginger, scallions, garlic and salt. Bring to a boil, then immediately turn the heat down so low that the water barely trembles — this gentle poaching, never a hard boil, is what keeps the meat silky instead of tough. Simmer 25 minutes, then turn off the heat completely and let the chicken sit in the covered pot, in the hot broth, for another 15 minutes to finish cooking through gently.

3 litres water
40 g ginger
4 stalks scallions
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp salt

✅ C'est prêt quand : a skewer pushed into the thickest part of the thigh meets no resistance and the juices run clear, or a thermometer reads 74°C (165°F)

⏱40:00

Shock in ice water

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Cook the rice

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Make the two sauces

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Carve the chicken

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Serve and enjoy

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Season the chicken

1.5 kg whole chicken
2 tbsp coarse salt

✅ C'est prêt quand : the skin feels dry and slightly taut, with no raw salt visible

Poach gently

3 litres water
40 g ginger
4 stalks scallions
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp salt

✅ C'est prêt quand : a skewer pushed into the thickest part of the thigh meets no resistance and the juices run clear, or a thermometer reads 74°C (165°F)

⏱40:00

Shock in ice water

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Cook the rice

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Make the two sauces

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Carve the chicken

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Serve and enjoy

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

History & Culture

The Story Behind the Dish

📍 Hainan Island, southern China📅 Developed over generations, popularized abroad in the early-to-mid 20th century🍗 CN

This dish traces back to a simple poached chicken and rice dish from Hainan Island, where cooks learned to make the most of a whole bird by using its broth and fat to cook the rice alongside it. When Hainanese emigrants settled in Singapore, Malaysia and other parts of Southeast Asia in the early 20th century, they brought this everyday meal with them, and it slowly transformed into one of the region's most beloved comfort foods.

Today it is cooked at home and served at countless hawker stalls and restaurants, each with its own small variations in sauces and seasoning, but all built on the same idea: nothing wasted, everything flavoured by the chicken itself.

⭐ Why It's Famous

It turns a single humble chicken into three distinct pleasures — tender poached meat, glossy savoury rice and two punchy sauces — using almost no equipment and no waste.

💡 Fun Fact

Both Singapore and Malaysia claim versions of this dish as a national favorite, even though its roots trace back to a single island off the coast of southern China.

🍗