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A delicious plate of Vietnamese Hainanese chicken rice with fragrant rice, tender chicken, and ginger fish sauce, garnished with herbs and served with cucumber and tomato slices

Cơm Gà Hải Nam (Vietnamese-style Hainan chicken rice)

Cielle
Cơm Gà Hải Nam, a spin on Hainanese chicken rice in Vietnam, highlights succulent poached chicken, fragrant rice cooked in chicken broth, and a distinctive zesty ginger fish sauce. Surely to satisfy you
5 from 2 votes
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Course Main Course
Cuisine Chinese, Vietnamese
Servings 2 people

Equipment

  • 1 stock pot
  • 1 rice cooker

Ingredients
  

Chicken Rice

  • 2 chicken leg quarters
  • 2 cup water (500ml) (just enough to cover the chicken in the pot)
  • 1 onion (quartered)
  • 1 stalk lemongrass (slightly pounded)
  • 1 large piece ginger (3inch or 7cm) (sliced)
  • 2 Kaffir leaves
  • ½ tbsp turmeric powder
  • ½ tsp Salt (adjust to taste)
  • 1 tsp Chicken powder (adjust to taste)
  • 3 tbsp cooking oil
  • ¼ tsp turmeric powder (for cooking rice)

Ginger Fishsauce:

  • 3 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2½ tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp chicken broth (or water)
  • ½ tsp vinegar
  • 2 slice ginger (15g) (minced)
  • 1 Thai Bird's eye chili (minced)
  • Sautéed scallion stem (saved from sautéing the rice)

Instructions
 

Poaching chicken:

  • In a pot, add water along with all the aromatics and seasonings: onion, ginger, lime leaves, scallions, lemongrass, turmeric powder, salt, and chicken powder.
  • Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes, allowing the aromatics to infuse their flavors.
  • Reduce the heat to the lowest setting. When the water is gently bubbling, gently introduce the chicken legs.
  • Poach the chicken over low heat for 20 minutes with the lid on. Afterwards, turn off the heat and let the chicken rest for an additional 15 minutes.
  • To check if the chicken is done, use a chopstick to pierce the thickest part. It's fully cooked when no pink juices come out.
  • Remove the chicken from the pot and wrap it in plastic wrap. Keep the chicken broth.

Cooking chicken rice:

  • While the chicken is simmering, you can prepare the rice. Rinse the rice with water and drain it well.
  • In a pot, heat 3 tablespoons of cooking oil (or rendered chicken fat). Add the white part of the scallions and sauté until they become fragrant and slightly golden.
  • Remove the scallions and set them aside for making the dipping sauce later.
  • Stir-fry the Jasmine rice with the scallion-infused oil and turmeric powder until the rice turns translucent.
  • Transfer the rice to a rice cooker pot and add the chicken broth (use slightly less liquid than usual because the rice is already partially cooked). Cook the rice.

Preparing the ginger fish sauce:

  • Mix together all the sauce ingredients - fish sauce, sugar, minced ginger, chili, chicken broth, vinegar, and the sautéed scallions.

Serving

  • Debone the chicken legs and cut them into bite-sized pieces (optional).
  • Serve Cơm Gà Hải Nam with slices of cucumber, tomato, and the ginger fish sauce. Enjoy!!

Notes

  • Opt for high-quality organic or free-range chicken.
  • Using chicken fat for sautéing the rice. It can enhance the flavor.
  • If you don't need your poached chicken with yellow skin, you can omit the turmeric powder.
     
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