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When we talk about the good food in Malaysia, you don’t want to miss the famous Claypot Chicken Rice (瓦煲雞飯).  I remember when I lived in Malaysia with my family, we loved to go to the hawker stall near my house in Klang for the claypot chicken rice.  Essentially, the claypot is filled with rice, topped with chicken and other ingredients such as chinese sausages, mushroom and especially salted fish pieces that gave an extra taste. Then the claypot chicken rice is cooked using the most traditional way on top of charcoal fire which makes it so fragrant and delicious.

To cook a perfect claypot chicken rice, the most important thing is to know how to control the charcoal fire. You practically have to stand there to fan the charcoal in order to control for high or low heat, and not to burn the rice.  One of the best parts of the claypot chicken rice is the crispy rice bits (not burnt rice) that are stuck on the side and the bottom of the claypot that makes it so unique tasty.

For those who are at home and craving for claypot chicken rice, you don’t really need to cook it over charcoal fire. No one wants to do that, that is so time consuming and troublesome. You can either prepare on a stove top, or be like me, use the rice cooker which is the easiest way. Usually what I do is cook the rice with seasoning in the rice cooker, at the same time stir fry the ingredients and then put everything into the rice cooker. Let the rice cooker do the magic. Done. That’s easy right?

Ingredients:

3 cups rice
1 chicken leg quarter (cut into pieces)
1  skinless chicken breast (cut into small pieces)
2 Chinese sausages (sliced)
6-8 mushrooms (soak in hot water until soft, cut into stripes, keep the mushroom water for cooking)
2 pieces boneless salted fish (cut into small pieces)
6 inches ginger (cut into fine stripes)
4 garlic cloves (minced)
4 shallots (cut into fine rings and fry till golden brown) – optional

Rice seasoning:
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 pinch salt
1/2 portion fried ginger stripes, garlic and shallots with frying oil

Chicken seasoning:
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp cooking wine
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp sesame oil
Mushroom water
Salt & pepper to taste

Serve size:  4-5 people

Cooking method:

1. Heat 3 tbsp of cooking oil, stir fry shallots till golden, do not burn. Set fried shallots aside in small bowl with half of the frying oil.
2. In the same pan, stir fry ginger and garlic with remaining oil till golden, do not burn. Save half of the fried ginger and garlic aside  for rice seasoning.
3. Continue to add in chicken and stir fry with ginger and garlic until half cook.
4. Add in mushroom and sausages into chicken, quickly stir fry. Add in the seasoning mixture for chicken and cook until sauce thickens and slightly dry. Add salt & pepper for taste. Dish out and set aside.
5. Wash the rice and add water into rice cooker, add in all rice seasoning. Add in half portion of the fried ginger and garlic, and add some shallots with the frying oil. Mix well and start cooking rice.
6. Mean while, fry the salted fish pieces and set aside for later toppings.
7. After about 20 minutes, check when the rice is about to dry, add in the stir fried chicken into the rice. Continue to cook until the rice is completely cooked.
8. When the rice is cooked, leave the rice cooker at “Warm”  for 15 minutes before serving.
9. Dish up rice into individual claypot or bowl, top with fried salted fish and fried shallots, garnish with chopped scallion. If preferred, serve with hot chili sauce.