MOCK CHICKEN HAINANESE RICE

I was watching AFC and the program showing was featuring Hainanese Chicken Rice that got me so hungry that I had to literally stand up and make myself some!   Of course I couldn't make it from scratch, or even in the proper way, so I substituted and improvised.  This is the end product. Not authentic  (at al) , but it certainly hit the spot :)

First of all, cook the chicken. For this recipe, I had 6 chicken parts. Along with 2 cloves roughly chopped garlic, 1 x 2 inches ginger in slices, a couple of stalks of scallions, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 tsp crushed whole black pepper, 3 whole shitake mushrooms, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup xiaoxing wine, 1/4 tsp salt, add it all with the chicken into a casserole and top off with cold water.  Let simmer until chicken is cooked, approximately 15-20 minutes. I also added a chicken cube to amp up the chicken flavor.

ABOVE: (clockwise, from top) ginger, shitake mushroom, cracked black pepper, chopped garlic, bay leaf, scallions
BELOW: cut-up chicken pieces
(not in picture : soy sauce, xiaoxing wine)

Garnishes: sliced scallions and cucumbers

Once chicken is cooked, remove from flame, remove chicken and mushrooms and arrange on a serving platter. Garnish with cucumbers and sliced scallions. Strain broth and de-fat by skimming the top of the soup with a spoon, carefully removing the thin layer of fat as much as possible. Set aside.

(clockwise, from top right) broth, grated garlic, grated ginger, cooked rice

 RICE.  Heat a pan and add 1 tbsp oil until hot.  Add 1 tsp grated ginger and saute until fragrant. Add in 2 cloves grated garlic and saute for just a few seconds until fragrant. Do not brown.  Add cooked rice (I used about 6 cups) and about 1 cup of the reserved broth.  Keep adding broth until rice is just moist but not wet. Adjust seasoning with salt as needed. Sprinkle 1 tbsp sesame oil over the rice and mix together. Serve immediately.

Chicken Rice

SOUP. Adjust taste of broth.  If needed add hot water and heat until piping hot. Serve immediately.

(clockwise, from top) grated garlic, chili flakes, grated ginger 

CHILI-GINGER SAUCE. Usually, the ginger sauce and chili paste are served separately, but I decided to mix them together. In a  small bowl, mix together 1 tsp grated ginger, 1 clove grated garlic, 1/2 tsp chili flakes (I like heat, which is why I added this much but you can add as little or as much as you like) and enough broth to make a paste.  In a pan, heat together 1/2 tbsp canola oil and 1/2 tbsp sesame oil until searing hot.  Pour in ginger, garlic, chili mixture and mix together.

Chili-Ginger Sauce

Serve chicken with cucumber, rice, soup. oyster sauce and chili-ginger sauce.

DOUBLE BAKED POTATOES

It was just suppose to be a simple baked potato, but because we didn't have enough cheese, I thought of making a bechamel sauce.  And from that sprung the idea of making it a double baked potato, similar to what they have in Everything At Steak.  

Prepare the potatoes:
Wrap the medium-sized potatoes individually in aluminum foil.  Roast in 450F oven for 20-30 mins, or until soft (pierced easily by a fork).  Cut in half and remove flesh, leaving around a centimeter from the skin.  Set aside.

Chicken bechamel sauce:
In a saucepan, melt 2 tbsp butter.  Throw in 1 small onion, chopped.  Saute until soft and translucent.  Add 1/2 cup thinly sliced mushrooms and brown.  Add 2 tbsp flour and mix together until a roux is formed.  Stir around for approximately 1 minute.  Slowly add 2 cups of chicken broth.  Stir until smooth.  Let simmer.  Adjust consistency.  Add 1 cup cream.  Simmer until bubbles break surface.  Add 1 cup cheese.  Stir until cheese is completely melted.  Season with salt, pepper, 1/2 tsp paprika and 1/4 tsp nutmeg.  Remove from heat and stir in cooked shredded chicken.  Taste to adjust seasoning.

To assemble:
Dot butter in potato cases.  Fill with mashed potato mixture and form into a mound.  Sprinkle with additional cheese and dot with butter.  Return to oven for another 15 - 20 minutes.  Serve immediately with chopped chives and sour cream.

CHICKEN BIRYANI

it always begin with an ingredient, and in this case, it was basmati rice that was almost a year in the cupboard. And a craving for Indian food, particularly biryani.  And after about an hour of searching online for a beginner's version, my mum casually mentions she has one courtesy of Magnolia chickens.  And so the following is an adaptation of said recipe, as well as some tweaks that I learned after reading numerous versions.  It's actually been some time since I ate an authentic biryani, so I hope this had atleast some semblance.  If not, well I hope its atleast remotely tasty.

Spice mixture:
Dry roast 1 tsp coriander seeds and 2 bay leaves until fragrant.  Grind in mortar and pestle until powdery.  Add 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp finely chopped garlic, 1 tsp grated ginger, and 1 whole chili pepper chopped to the mortar and pestle.  Grind to a paste.  Add 1/4 tsp dried chili flakes, 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp turmeric, 1/4 tsp cloves, and 2 tbsp ghee*.  Mix together.  Set aside.

For marinade:
Mix together 1 tbsp tomato paste to 1/2 cup plain yogurt.  Add 2/3 of spice mixture.  Stir together.  Pour over 1/2 kg chicken pieces and marinade for 3 to 4 hours.


To prepare:
First, prepare the rice by washing 3 cups of uncooked basmati rice and then soaking for atleast 10-15 minutes.  Set aside.  In a bowl, soak 1 tsp katsuba or saffron in 2 tbsp milk and soak for at least 10 minutes.  Set aside.


Heat pan with 1 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp ghee.  Saute 1 large chopped onion until lightly browned.  Add 1 tsp grated ginger, 1/2 tsp finely chopped garlic, and 1 whole chopped chili pepper.  Fry until fragrant.  Add 2 whole tomatoes, seeded and chopped.  Saute until tomatoes are soft.  Brown chicken pieces. Remove and set aside.  Add remaining spice mixture.   Drain rice and pour into pan.  Saute until translucent.  Add katsuba/saffron mixture and stir until liquid has evaporated.  At this point, the rice can be cooked in the pot or in a rice cooker.  I opted for the rice cooker so the rice mixture was transferred to one.  add in 4 1/2 to 5 cups chicken broth.  Cook.  Halfway through, add chicken to the rice mixture.  In remaining 5 minutes cooking time, add peas.  


Garnish with chopped cilantro, slivered almonds and hard boiled eggs.




*to make ghee:  melt 1/2 cup butter until it bubbes.  Watch butter carefully to make sure it does not burn.  Remove from heat.  Milk solids will settle on the bottom of the pan.  Carefully pour off clarified butter.


✔  1/3 cup raisins may be added to the rice with the peas.