Hainanese Chicken Rice is a very popular dish in Singapore and Malaysia. In fact, Singapore has claimed this as their national dish! The chicken is served either roasted, poached, or steamed.
The flavor of the rice is out of this world! It’s not just plain white rice. Normally, the uncooked rice is stir-fried in ginger and garlic, then cooked in chicken broth. Yumm, right??
For this particular recipe, I toss everything in the rice cooker and let it do its magic!
I used to save this dish for weekends because it was a bit of work, but using a rice cooker, I now can enjoy chicken rice even on the busiest weeknights!
First, rub 2 teaspoons of sesame oil on to 6 chicken drumsticks. I like using chicken drumsticks for this, but you can use chicken breast or chicken thighs (skin on). Just make sure that the pieces are small enough so that it’s cooked all the way through. Let it marinate for about 20 minutes.
After washing and draining the rice (2 cups), put the uncooked rice straight into the rice cooker. Instead of filling the rice cooker with water, fill it with chicken stock to the “2-cup” line. It should be approximately 3 cups of chicken stock.
Next, add 3 cloves of garlic (finely chopped), and about 1 inch of ginger (thinly sliced, then cut into thin strips).
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Arrange the chicken drumsticks over the rice.
Finally, add 3 pandan leaves, tied into a knot. If you’re not able to find pandan leaves, feel free to leave it out. It’s optional but it does add a very subtle fragrance to the dish. In the States, I was only able to find pandan leaves in the freezer section at the Asian supermarkets.
Just let the rice cooker do its thing and by the time the rice is cooked, the chicken will be perfectly cooked as well. Tender, flavorful, and juicy.
The rice, of course, extremely flavorful with the chicken stock, ginger and garlic. Garnish with chopped scallions, then serve with your favorite chili sauce on the side.
The best part about this dish is that there’s hardly any cleanup since everything was cooked in the rice cooker 🙂
Rice Cooker Hainanese Chicken Rice
Ingredients
- 6 chicken drumsticks approx 1 1/2 pounds
- 1 dash ground black pepper
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
- 2 cups rice uncooked – use the measuring cup that came with your rice cooker!
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1/2 inch of ginger cut into thin strips
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 3 pandan leaves tied into a knot (optional)
- scallions for garnish
- hot sauce recommended: sriracha or sambal oelek for serving
Instructions
- Rub sesame oil on chicken drumsticks. Top with a pinch of black pepper. Let marinade for about 20 minutes.
- Wash and drain rice. Put in rice cooker.
- Add chicken stock, ginger, garlic and pandan leaves (Fill chicken stock to the 2-cup line in your rice cooker).
- Arrange the chicken drumsticks over the rice.
- Turn on the rice cooker and let it cook.
- When rice cooker shuts off, remove the lid and let it sit for about 10 more minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the rice cooker.
- Fluff the rice with a fork or a pair of chopsticks.
- Serve rice with chicken and hot sauce.
- Garnish with scallions.
Ann
Monday 25th of September 2023
I am using organic no salt added chicken broth, should i add some salt to the recipe & how much?
Char
Sunday 15th of October 2023
Hi Ann! Yes I do recommend adding some salt to taste. Around 1 tablespoon should do.
Gillian
Friday 25th of August 2023
Can I use the instant pot and use the default rice button for this recipe?
Char
Friday 25th of August 2023
Hi Gillian! Yes, you can do that. I also have an Instant Pot version of this recipe here at this link: https://www.wokandskillet.com/instant-pot-hainanese-chicken-rice/
Ange
Thursday 6th of July 2023
Is the 3 cups of chicken stock the cup that comes with the rice cooker or a normal cup. Thank you
Char
Friday 7th of July 2023
Hi Ange! You would first use the cup that came with your rice cooker to measure 2 cups of rice. When measuring the chicken stock, you would use a normal measuring cup instead. It will take approximately 3 cups of chicken stock to fill your rice cooker up to the 2-cup line. I hope this helps to clarify!
Linda
Thursday 13th of April 2023
Is there any replacement for sesame oil? My son is allergic, thanks!
Char
Sunday 16th of April 2023
Hi Linda! You can use any regular light-flavored cooking oil in place of sesame oil.
Nurulain Rafiel
Saturday 29th of May 2021
Hi there! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I just made it for lunch today (substituted the drumstick to chicken breast) and it still taste superrrr good!! Once again, thank you!
Char
Saturday 29th of May 2021
Hi Nuralain! Thanks so much for trying this recipe! I'm so glad you enjoyed it :)