Color-bomb in one Hoi An Chicken Dish

It is said that to make the famous Chicken Rice, Hoi An people carefully choose rice and chicken of top quality. Only free-range chickens raised in countryside gardens, not the industrial factory-style birds are selected because poultry raised in the gardens are stronger, with a far richer flavour and more muscular meat than the soggy stuff produced in industrial agriculture facilities. In addition, local cooks season the rice before cooking it with chicken broth and pandan leaves on wood-fired clay ovens. The chicken meat is boiled with some ginger before hand-shredded into small pieces and gently simmered with ginger, crushed onions, Vietnamese coriander and other spices to best absorb their flavours.

The trick to the recipe is to skillfully make the chicken pieces smell fragrant and spicy without losing the meat’s natural flavour. After all, the chicken skin is slippery and the meat is really tender and juicy. The springy chicken pieces and pleasantly yellow fragrant rice is then topped with pickled carrots, peppermint, papaya, and salted onions.

The dish is served with a small bowl of soup containing some chicken giblets like heart and liver as well as dipping fish sauce or very spicy chilli sauce to enhance the flavour depending on the preference.