# If You’re Seeking Your Next Effortless, Tasty One Pot Meal, This is It: Hainanese Chicken Rice
Have you ever experienced Hainanese chicken rice? Are you as enamored with it as I am? I would guess the answer is no because I have an enduring, profound love for chicken rice. It’s my ultimate source of comfort, my absolute favorite meal, my version of Anton Ego’s mother’s ratatouille. You know, that moment in the Pixar film where Anton is transported back to his mother’s kitchen and she presents him with ratatouille, making everything feel right in the world. That’s what Hainanese chicken rice signifies for me.
## What is Hainanese Chicken Rice?
Hainanese chicken is surprisingly straightforward yet intriguingly complex. It traces its origins to Hainan in Southern China, yet its true heart lies in Singapore, where you’ll come across variations of this beloved dish everywhere, from hawker stalls to upscale hotels. I would gladly argue that Hainanese chicken rice is the finest version of chicken and rice available. It’s so unassuming, so flavorful, and so pure. At its core, Hainanese chicken rice is simply that: chicken and rice.
The chicken is poached in a straightforward yet aromatic broth infused with ginger, garlic, and scallions, resulting in a silky, tender experience that tastes like the best chicken one could ever enjoy. The accompanying rice is a star on its own: rich in chicken flavor, coated in fat, savory, and fragrant.
## What’s So Unique About the Rice?
You need to sample it to truly understand, but I believe the reason Hainanese chicken rice is so exceptional is the rice itself. The magic of the rice lies in chicken fat. Any skilled cook knows that cooking rice in broth allows the broth to seep inside the grains, enhancing flavor. Numerous cultures practice this, similar to how Mexican rice is prepared with tomatoes and onions. Chicken rice elevates this by sautéing uncooked rice in chicken fat with garlic, shallots, and ginger before cooking in chicken broth, imparting an additional layer of toasty, aromatic goodness. The rice should be shiny, rich, and bursting with flavor.
## The Best Chicken Rice is the One You Enjoy Making
Numerous Hainanese chicken rice recipes involve lengthy (or even more) marinating and other intricate processes. It doesn’t have to be complicated, especially if your goal is simply to enjoy delicious chicken rice without vying against dozens of other vendors at a market. The rice is what deserves your careful focus, and that’s a straightforward task that doesn’t require much extra effort.
Personally, I relish in preparing chicken rice; it feels strangely therapeutic to me. Yet, there are times when I crave chicken and rice without the hassle of cooking an entire chicken. **This simple recipe is perfect for those occasions: skin-on boneless chicken thighs and rice are cooked together in one pot for convenience and fewer dishes to clean.** A win-win situation!
## The Key to Excellent Hainanese Chicken Rice
This is a straightforward one-pot Hainanese chicken rice recipe that’s packed with flavor and devoid of complicated steps. The recipe begins with chicken fat. If you’re like me and have a penchant for chicken rice and prepare it regularly, you’ll want to keep a jar of rendered chicken fat in your fridge. Even if you’re not like me and don’t intend to make chicken rice every day, having a jar of chicken fat on hand is a must. Chicken fat delivers PURE FLAVOR.
Chicken fat is what enhances the flavor of the rice component of chicken rice. But if you don’t possess any chicken fat, don’t fret; toasting your rice in any type of fat will give it a delectable, shiny flavor coating. The critical step is sautéing the ginger, garlic, and shallots in fat so that the aromatics release their incredible flavor into the rice.
## How to Render Chicken Fat
Chicken fat is fundamental to great Hainanese chicken rice. The chicken fat contributes so much taste to the rice, it’ll astonish you.
1. **Collect.** Remove excess skin from the chicken thighs. Whenever a recipe requires boneless skinless chicken thighs, opt for skin-on, bone-in chicken. Debone and retain the bones for stock, and save the skin for rendering. I prefer to freeze a large quantity and then produce a significant batch of chicken fat and crispy chicken skin.
2. **Chop.** Using a sharp knife, cut the chicken skin into small 1/2 inch pieces. Scissors also work well for this task.
3. **Slowly render.** Place all of the chicken skins in a non-stick (or cast iron) skillet, pot, or pan. I prefer using a pot to maintain