Rice Cooker Chicken Rice - One Pot Hainanese Rice

It doesn't get much easier or tastier than this Rice Cooker Chicken Rice. Just throw everything in the rice cooker and let it work its magic! With garlic, ginger, green onion and sesame oil, this is one of those great one-pot meals that makes a delicious, healthy and affordable dinner. The whole cooking process takes only 30 minutes, so try this easy recipe tonight!

Also known as Hainanese rice, if you're looking for an easy dinner, this rice cooker recipe has you covered. It's simply a matter of placing boneless chicken thighs (skin off) in a rice cooker with rice, chicken broth, garlic, ginger and green onion, and letting the cooker do the work. You'll get tender poached chicken and subtly fragrant rice, to serve with cucumber, carrots and a delicious green onion sauce.

Ingredients you'll need to make Rice Cooker Chicken Rice

You'll need the following ingredients to make this easy Rice Cooker meal:

Chicken Rice

• 4 tablespoon Fresh ginger (piece)
• 1 ½ cups of rice (I like long grain white, uncooked rice)
• 4 cloves Garlic
• 2 ¼ cups of Chicken stock (chicken broth), or 2 ¼ cups of water with stock concentrate.
• ½ bunch Green onion (scallion)
• 500 g Chicken thigh fillets, skin off. Chicken thigh is best here because it is juicy and tender, but you can use chicken breast if you prefer it.

Green Onion Sauce (aka Scallion oil)

• Half the green onion, garlic and ginger +
• 2 teaspoon Fish sauce
• 2 tablespoon Sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon White sugar
• 1 Lime (about 2 tablespoon lime juice)

To serve

• 1 Lebanese cucumber
• 2 Carrots
• ½ bunch Coriander (cilantro)
• 2 teaspoon Dark soy sauce - or you can use a variety of sauces like oyster sauce, chili sauce or hoisin sauce to serve.

See the recipe card for full details and to increase or decrease servings.

Substitutions and Add-ins

• This easy recipe is dairy free and you can swap dark soy for tamari to make it gluten free.
• Chili sauce - I didn't use it because I'm serving little people, but chili sauce is traditionally including when you serve this dish. My favourite is the Lao Gan Ma Crispy Chili Oil - it makes everything taste amazing.
• Chinese sausage - you can add Chinese sausage to the rice cooker if you would like, it adds a lot of flavour with the fat from the pork.
• Oyster sauce - you can use this instead of dark soy sauce at the end.
• Chicken - if you have a large instant pot you can use a whole chicken instead of chicken thigh fillets. If you do, that will serve 6-8 people. Increase volume of rice to match. You can also use chicken drumsticks, just cook for longer to finish to chicken around the bone.
• Swap the cucumber and carrot for Chinese greens like Gai Lan or Pak choi.

How to make Rice Cooker Chicken Rice

1. Prepare Aromatics: Peel and mince the ginger, mince the garlic, and finely slice the green onion. Set aside.
2. Cook Rice: Rinse the rice, drain it, and add it to a rice cooker pot or a large saucepan. Add the chicken stock, half of the ginger, half of the garlic, and half of the green onion. Add the chicken thighs on top of the rice and make sure they are submerged under the chicken broth. Don't worry about trimming chicken fat, this will just add flavour and melt into the rice when you cook (and in my opinion, is the best part). Top with the rice cooker lid and turn on to cook setting, or cook in a medium stockpot or saucepan on low-medium heat for 25 minutes cooking time, or until the rice is cooked.
3. Prepare Flavorful Sauce: In a separate bowl, mix together the remaining ginger, garlic, and most of the green onion (save a little for garnish). Add the fish sauce, sesame oil, white sugar, and lime juice. Stir well.
   TIP: You don't need a food processor to whizz the sauce - I like to keep it as is.
4. Prepare Vegetables: Finely slice the cucumber, julienne the carrots, and roughly chop the coriander.
5. Slice the Chicken: Once the rice and chicken are cooked, slice the chicken into smaller pieces.
6. Serve: Place the sliced chicken pieces alongside the cooked rice on a serving plate. Use a fork to make fluffy rice. Arrange the cucumber, carrots, and coriander on the side. Drizzle the flavorful sauce over the chicken and rice. Finish by topping with dark soy sauce and the reserved green onion. Enjoy your Rice Cooker Chicken Rice!

How to Store Rice Cooker Chicken Rice

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 days.

Kid-Friendly Variations

To make this kid-friendly, simply serve the rice with plain carrot and cucumber, and top with chicken slices. Skip the sauces.

Equipment needed to make Rice Cooker Chicken Rice

Despite the name, you won't necessarily need a rice cooker, although it is a lot easier if you have one. You can also make this in an instant pot or a saucepan with a lid, or a pressure cooker.

More Asian Chicken Recipes

If you like this easy Rice cooker chicken rice recipe, you should try my 4-Ingredient Asian Sweet and Sticky Chicken Thighs or my Satay Chicken Noodle Salad or this Crispy Honey Chicken (No Fry).

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