HAINANESE CHICKEN RECIPE

It's the ginger sauce that made it a hit with the "piggery". At first glance, the "piggery" were not at all enthusiastic to try it. Reared in "chicken with color " i.e. golden brown if fried, saucy brown if "adobo. reddish orange if "afritada ( a spanish dish with tomato and potato) , yellowish if curried.....simple poached chicken ( which the Hainanese is ) is strange or looks "unfinished" to them.

Anyway, the honey pie and I persuaded them to give it a try but explained to them that initially it might be "bland" but taken with the ginger sauce, the first bite would be lovely. We described further that it is a beautiful dish that is meant to be subtle.

They tried it and they haven't looked back since. This dish is now a regular staple in our dining table and is also regularly ordered when we find ourselves in a Chinese restaurant.

You can also try Hoisin sauce or add soy  to your ginger sauce ( like my son Martin does ) as an option to plain ginger sauce.

Here are the ingredients :

1 whole chicken

pandan leaves 

onion

ginger

garlic

salt and pepper to taste

sesame oil

soy sauce

Method : Chicken

1.  Put pandan leaves, slices of ginger, cloves of garlic, half an onion inside the chicken's cavity. Tie the legs with the pandan leaves.

2.  Half-fill a pot with water, salt, pepper, ginger, onion, garlic . Boil.

3. When it starts to boil, submerge the chicken. Chicken should be under the water. Put an oven safe plate to weigh down the chicken. Cover the pot. 15 minutes.

4. After 15 minutes, turn off the fire. But keep the lid close. Wait for 15 minutes.

5. Take out the chicken so as not to overcook. If there is still blood coming out,  turn on the heat again. Wait for the water to boil and submerge the chicken for 5 minutes.  Turn off the fire and leave the lid close for another 5 minutes. Take out the chicken.

6. Set aside and cool. 

7, Chicken broth can be used to make Hainanese rice

Cutting chicken :

1.  Cut whole chickening half  lengthwise.

2.  Cut the whole leg

3.  Cut the wings.

4. Cut the leg part into 3 parts; the breast  into 4   

5. Arrange in the plate

6. Garnish with cucumber and ribbons of leeks

    or dices spring onion

Options:

Sesame-soy sauce-brown sugar Sauce

1. If you want a little color in your chicken. Make a  sesame oil-soy-sugar sauce. I don't measure it. I go by taste. Then brush it on your chicken to give it a sheen and a hint of brown color

2. OR just brush the chicken with sesame oil

Ginger Sauce

1. Grate   1 big ginger about 3 inches long  or less depends if you love ginger like we do :)

2. Squeeze to remove the juice. But save the juice  to flavor the next hainanese chicken :)

3. Add sesame oil  and vegetable oil to the pulp and a little salt to taste