Hainanese Chicken Soup
My all time favourite!
If there is one recipe that I always get asked for it is this one, Hainanese Chicken. It’s cheap, simple and oh so delicious. While the side sauces are completely optional I do recommend making them, I think the best part of this soup is that your guests can pimp it up it to suit their own taste! This recipe is absolutely a personal favourite of mine, enjoy!
Serves 6
Cook time: 1.5 hours
Prep Time: 15 mins
INGREDIENTS
Soup
1.5 kg free-range chicken, quartered into breast and wing, thigh and leg.
1/2 kg free range chicken carcasses (necks or legs or wings)
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
8cm ginger, sliced
6 spring onions, roughly chopped
1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
Big pinch of salt
Fried Chicken
Oil for frying
1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
Big pinch of salt
Chilli Sauce
10 birds eye red chillies, roughly chopped
1 large garlic clove, roughly chopped
1 ½ tbsp of white vinegar or lime juice
1 tbsp neutral oil
Big pinch of salt
Spring Onion Sauce
4 spring onions
2cm ginger, roughly chopped
½ tbsp of white vinegar or lime juice
1 tbsp neutral oil
½ tsp salt
To serve
Noodles of your choice, I like vermicelli or thin egg noodles (cook according to instruction on packet)
Blanched leafy greens such as bok choy or spinach
Sliced spring onion
Soy to taste
METHOD
With a mortar and pestle crush and bruise the garlic, half the ginger and two of the spring onions to a paste (or blend in a food processor). Add the soy sauce to the paste then rub the paste into the chicken with a pinch of salt.
Use a pot big enough to cover the chicken with an inch of water, bring water to a rapid boil. Add the chicken, remaining ginger and spring onion then turn off the heat. Cover the pot and leave chicken to stand in the water for 1 hour. After about 30 minutes, heat the water once again until it is almost boiling then turn the heat off again. Cooking the chicken gently this way helps to keep the chicken nice and juicy, definitely worth the extra effort! Remove the breasts and thighs from the water leaving the carcasses in the stock. Pat the chicken dry and allow to dry out further and cool uncovered.
To make the soup boil the stock and carcasses for 30mins until you can smell a strong chicken flavour. Strain the stock through a sieve and muslin (or a clean Chux) into a clean saucepan.
Meanwhile make the chilli sauce, blend all the ingredients in a food processor or blender. Add a tbsp of chicken stock to loosen the sauce if needed then add the vinegar or lime and salt to taste.
To make the spring onion sauce, blend all the ingredients in a food processor or blender. Add a tbsp of chicken stock to loosen the sauce if needed then add the vinegar or lime and salt to taste.
If you like your chicken crispy (which I do!) follow this step, otherwise for super healthy poached chicken remove the skin and skip ahead to serving. Heat enough oil in wok to shallow fry. Fry the chicken pieces skin side down until golden in colour. Remove from heat and splash the soy sauce, sesame oil and salt over the skin side.
To serve, slice the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place noodles and blanched greens into a bowl, then place chicken on top. Ladle soup into bowl, garnish with sliced spring onion. Serve chilli, spring onion and soy sauce on the side. Let your guests go crazy and spice up the soup as they please!
Notes
The best place to get ingredients is the Central Market. You can pick up bunches of Spring Onions for a measly $1-2 and get your hands on some delicious free range chicken! Ginger is in season at the moment, if you can scrape off the skin with your fingernail it means it’s fresh, pick those ones.