Clay Pot Chicken Rice 北菇滑雞煲仔飯

Clay Pot Chicken Rice 北菇滑雞煲仔飯 is one of the more popular Clay Pot Rice 煲仔飯 (Cantonese: bo zai fan) dish. It is a Cantonese dish that goes back over 2000 years.  It originated in the region of Lingnan.  Interestingly, it seems to have emerged in the palace kitchens, made for the royal family and guests. 

What is Clay Pot Rice?  There are three main components to this dish….

1.  The rice:  in traditional Cantonese style, the bottom layer of rice is crispy 鍋巴 (Cantonese: woa ba).  Pork fat drizzled on the lid slowly slides down the inside surface of the pot, creating a sizzling effect on the rice, making it crispy.
2. The topping:  Chicken, pork, offal, frog legs, preserved meats and egg.  Preserved meats is usually a must.  It infuses the initial flavours into the rice and the other proteins.  In traditional preparation, no additional seasonings are necessary.  You add the toppings when the rice is still a bit raw.  Consequently, by adding the proteins at the right time, you will achieve moist and tender results.
3. The sauce:  in addition to the meat toppings that add flavour to the rice, some would say that the sweet soy sauce is the essence of the Clay Pot. It has an infusion of pork fat, pork liver, fish, scallion, garlic, leeks and ginger to add a complex flavour.  This sauce is then added to the contents after everything has been cooked.

As a result, you get an insanely aromatic pot of yumminess!

It’s hard to keep such a delicious dish a palace secret forever!  It eventually made its way to everyday kitchens and restaurants.  Moreover, many regions in China have their own, slightly tweaked version of the clay pot rice.  In Xiamen, they will typically have fresh mustard greens, carrots and pork belly as a base mixed with the rice and then other toppings placed on top.  In the northern parts of China, their clay pot rice will not always have the crispy rice on the bottom.  They often make a spicy stir-fry and then add it to the semi-cooked rice in the clay pot. 

The most popular clay pot rice toppings are chicken, black bean pork spare ribs, preserved meats, meat patties and frog legs.  In my Clay Pot Chicken Rice 北菇滑雞煲仔飯 recipe, I’ll show you how to use minimal effort to make this absolutely amazing iconic dish.  You will get crispy rice, tender chicken and a to-die-for sweet soy sauce!  So, you no longer need to count on luck to get excellent results every time.

Looking for something a little quicker to make? Try my recipe for Steamed Chicken with Shitake Mushrooms 北菇蒸滑雞.

Clay Pot Chicken Rice 北菇滑雞煲仔飯

You can use any toppings including the more popular ones like pork ribs and meat patties.

Just be sure to keep the meat in uniformed sizes and not too thick so that it can be cooked evenly.

The method used to make the rice doesn’t change with the toppings.

Note that if you reduce the amount of oil poured into the clay pot, you may end up getting some burnt rice and not getting any crispy rice.

You can substitute the rendered chicken fat with any oil.

5 from 1 vote

Approximate cost (CAD) $9

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Wait Time 40 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine Chinese

Servings 2 Servings

Calories 1199 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 350 g Chicken meat , boneless (for bone-in, use 400 g) I used the meat of 2 chicken legs
• 40 g Shiitake mushrooms , fresh or dried I used 2 fresh ones
• 1 Chinese preserved pork sausage
• 1 Chinese preserved liver sausage
• 1 c Uncooked rice Long grain rice is preferred, but I used short grain rice
• 2 tbsp Oil
• 1 c Water
• 2 stalks Green onions , green part only, chopped
• 4 sprigs Cilantro , leaf portion

Ingredients for chicken marinade:

• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tbsp Abalone sauce or oyster sauce
• 1 tsp Light soy sauce
• 2 tsp Cornstarch
• ½ tsp Salt
• ½ tsp Sugar
• ¼ tsp White pepper powder
• 1 tsp Sesame oil

Ingredients for shiitake marinade:

• ½ tsp Sugar
• 1 tsp Light soy sauce
• ½ tsp Cornstarch
• 1 tsp Sesame oil

Ingredients for sweet soy sauce:

• 50 g Chicken fat or pork fat (or 1 tbsp oil)
• 1 Shallot , sliced
• 2 stalks Green onions , white part only, smashed
• 4 Cilantro stems add more if you like cilantro
• 4 slices Ginger
• 90 ml Water
• 1 tbsp Light soy sauce
• 1 ½ tsp Dark soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Sugar

Instructions

 

• Measure 1 cup of uncooked rice, pour it into a container and soak with water for 30 minutes. Then pour through a sieve, rinse with water until water runs clear, shake off excess water and let dry in the sieve 1 cup is equal to 1 ½ cups using the rice cooker provided cup
  
• Cut the chicken into approx. 25 mm pieces. Remove some of the fat to make the sauce. Set aside
  
• Marinate the chicken with 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine, 1 tbsp abalone sauce, 1 tsp light soy sauce, 2 tsp cornstarch, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp sugar and ¼ tsp white pepper powder. Mix well. Add 1 tsp sesame oil and mix well again. Set aside
  
• Slice the Chinese sausages and set aside
• Slice shiitake mushrooms using an angled slice to reduce the thickness of the mushrooms to ensure even cooking. Slice into desired size
• Marinate shiitake mushrooms with ½ tsp sugar 1 tsp light soy sauce and ½ tsp cornstarch. Mix well. Add 1 tsp sesame oil and mix well again. Set aside
  
• In a wok or pan, use low-medium heat to render the fat from the chicken fat
  
• When the chicken fat pieces become cracklings, add ginger, shallots, green onion whites and cilantro stems and stir-fry for approx. 4 minutes until ingredients have browned
  
• Turn the heat down to low and add 1 tbsp light soy sauce, 1 ½ tsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp sugar and 90 ml water. Mix well and let it come to a simmer
  
• Cook the sauce at a simmer for 5-6 minutes to infuse aroma into the sauce. Do not let the sauce come to a boil, it may create sourness to the sauce. Take the ginger out and put it with the marinating chicken. Set aside You can save the bits to add flavour when you cook vegetables
  
• Put the rice into a clay pot, add 1 c water to the rice Use an equal volume of rice to water. So, if making 2 c rice, use 2 c water
  
• Cover with a lid and turn heat on to high. This should take approx. 5 minutes
• Once the water in the clay pot begins to boil, remove the lid and turn the heat to medium.
  
• Combine the chicken, shiitake mushrooms and sausages together. Give it a quick mix
• When most of the water has evaporated, there will be no more water bubbles, then turn the heat down to low
  
• Pour the chicken, shiitakes and sausages on top of the rice. Slowly drizzle 2 tbsp of oil on the edge of the pot so that it can trickle down the sides and make the rice crispy
  
• Cover with the lid and time it for 5 minutes
• When 5 minutes is up, put on oven mits, hold the clay pot at an angle so that the heat is above the front side of the pot. Count 45 seconds
  
• Repeat step 18 for the other 3 sides (back, left and right)
  
• Put the pot back on the stove in normal position and leave it for another 5 minutes
• Once the 5 minutes is up, turn the heat to high for 1 minute and turn off heat and leave it for 10 minutes. During the cooking time, it’s important to not open the lid. The temperature and timing will be off if you open it
• Once the 10 minutes is up, check to see if the rice and meat are cooked. If it’s still raw, you can cover the lid and turn the heat up to high for 90 seconds, turn off heat and wait 5 minutes and check again
  
• When it’s cooked through, add cilantro and green onions and pour 2 tbsp of the sweet soy sauce on top
  
• Serve with additional sweet soy sauce
  

Notes

Summary of cooking time

Time	Heat Level	Specifics
Approx 5 min	High	Lid closed; until water boils
Approx 2 min	Medium	Lid open; until water evaporates
5 min	Low	Lid closed; heat bottom of pot
45 seconds	Low	Lid closed; heat front side of pot
45 seconds	Low	Lid closed; heat back side of pot
45 seconds	Low	Lid closed; heat  left side of pot
45 seconds	Low	Lid closed; heat right side of pot
5 minutes	Low	Lid closed; heat bottom of pot
1 minute	High	Lid closed; heat bottom of pot
10 minutes	Off	Lid closed

Nutrition

Calories: 1199kcalCarbohydrates: 113gProtein: 47gFat: 58gSaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 159mgSodium: 3771mgPotassium: 849mgFiber: 3gSugar: 24gVitamin A: 1055IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 97mgIron: 5mg

Keyword Chicken, Claypot, Pork Sausage, Rice, Rice Casserole, Sausage, Shiitake Mushroom

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