To Cook
Start by preparing the soup. Place all the ingredients of the soup into the hot pot, mix well and bring to a boil. Turn heat off and set aside.
Next, combine all the dipping sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix well until the sugar has dissolved. Set aside.
Place hot pot on the dining table and turn heat on to bring to a boil. Prepare and arrange all the other ingredients around the hot pot. One hot pot starts to boil, place a little of every ingredient in to the cook. Cover pot with lid and allow to boil, this is to ensure all ingredients are cooked.
Remove lid, turn heat down and eat fresh from the hot pot with some soup base and the dipping sauce.
Chicken
Steamed Chicken Feet with Black Bean Sauce (Fung Jao)
To Cook
Pat chicken feet with paper towels until dry. In a wok or deep pan, heat up oil and deep fry chicken feet in batches until golden brown. Drain.
In a pot, add water till half full and bring to a boil. Carefully place fried chicken feet into boiling water and boil for 40 mins. Check occasionally to ensure there is sufficient water.
Meanwhile, prepare garlic. Place minced garlic in a bowl together with fermented black beans, oyster sauce, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, fermented bean curd, ground white pepper, chicken stock and salt. Combine till well mixed.
Once chicken feet are ready, drain them from the pot of water. Place into a large mixing bowl and toss them with the seasoning sauce. Allow to marinade for at least 1 hr (or best overnight).
Steam marinated chicken feet for 3 hrs over low heat. Occasionally, gently mix the chicken feet with sauce while steaming to ensure that the chicken feet are evenly flavoured and coloured.
Serve immediately.
Claypot Chicken with Bitter Melon
To Cook
In a clay pot, heat sesame oil and stir-fry soybean paste and fermented black beans for 30 secs or until fragrant.
Add in the garlic, ginger, chicken and bitter melon, stir-fry until the surface of the pork turn white.
Add in the sauce ingredients and simmer covered for 15 mins.
Season with soy sauce or salt to taste. Add the Shaoxing wine before removing from heat. Garnish with chopped spring onions and serve hot.
Vietnamese Chicken Congee (Chao Ga)
To Cook
In a large stock pot, place the chicken in and fill with enough water to cover the chicken. Add 1 peeled whole onion and 1 tbsp salt to the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. And then turn the heat down to medium and let chicken cook for a further 30-45 minutes, or until tender. Remove any froth or foam that appears on the surface.
Retain liquid in the stock pot and remove chicken from the pot and rinse under cold water to cool down and avoid discoloring. Shred the chicken meat and set aside.
Drain soaked rice and glutinous rice, adding them along with the ginger and shallot to the broth in the stock pot. Let it sit for 45 minutes untouched.
After 45 minutes, give the rice a stir and bring to boil over medium high heat for a further 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then season to taste with salt, fish sauce and chicken stock.
Transfer and serve in individual serving bowls. Top with the shredded chicken and. garnish with chopped spring onion, coriander or Vietnamese mint, and fried shallots.
Korean Chicken Congee (Dakjuk)
To Cook
Drain soaked rice. Heat oil in a medium sized pot over medium high heat. Add drained rice and saute for about 2 minutes. Add in chicken stock and bring to boil. Then lower heat and let it simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid rice sticking to the bottom of the pot.
After 15 minutes, add in the finely chopped carrot and garlic. Allow to cook for a further 15 minutes, continue to stir occasionally.
The rice should soften and thicken up by then. Turn heat off and add in spring onions and Korean chives. Stir evenly and serve onto individual serving bowls, and garnish with toasted sesame seeds.
Thai Chilli and Lemongrass Stir Fried Chicken
To Prep
In a bowl, combine the lemongrass, chilli, garlic and fish sauce.
Place chicken into another bowl and add ½ the lemongrass mixture, reserving the rest. Cover and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 20 mins.
To Cook
Heat the oil in a wok over high heat, add the reserved lemongrass mixture and stir-fry for about 1 min until fragrant.
Add the marinated chicken and stir-fry for 4-5 mins, or until the chicken pieces have a nice colour on all sides.
Add the onion, broccoli, carrots and capsicums, stir-fry for 1 min.
Pour the chicken stock into the pan and stir in the sugar. Simmer for a few mins, or until the stock has reduced to a thick sauce. Garnish with coriander and chillies, serve.
Honey Chicken with Mango
To Prep
In a large bowl, combine marinade ingredients well. Mix in chicken and set aside for 1 hr.
Cut the mangoes as close to the seed as possible, scoop out the flesh and set the skin shell aside. Cut the flesh into cubes, set aside.
To Cook
Heat some oil in a wok, coat chicken with crispy flour and deep-fry until golden brown. Drain and set aside.
In a saucepan, add seasonings ingredients and cook until well combined. Add fried chicken, cook over high heat until the chicken are well coated with the sauce.
Place mango cubes into the shell, top with fried chicken, sprinkle with chopped coriander.
Serve with Japanese mayonnaise.
Honey Garlic Chicken Ribs
To Prep
Place chicken ribs in a mixing bowl and mix well with the remaining chicken ingredients. Set aside for at least 30 mins.
To Cook
Heat oil in a deep pan over high heat. When the oil is hot, lower the heat to medium low and deep fry the marinated ribs for about 10 mins or until golden brown. Remove and set aside.
Add seasoning sauce ingredients in a separate pan and bring to a boil. Then add the deep fried ribs and stir fry quickly.
Add cornflour mixture to thicken the sauce. Dish up and serve immediately.
Cordyceps Ginseng Chicken Herbal Soup
To Cook
Rinse all herbs under running water.
In a large pot, bring 2L of water to boil, add the chicken and all of the herbs.
Turn down heat to low and let simmer for at least 2 hours. Remove all froth on the surface of the soup.
Season with salt to taste, turn the heat back up and bring the soup to a boil before turning off the heat. Serve hot.
If herb ingredients are not easily obtained, there are pre-packed Cordyceps Ginseng Herbal soup mix available at Asian grocery stores.
Chinese Herbal Chicken Soup
To Cook
Rinse all herbs under running water.
In a large pot, bring 2L of water to boil, add the chicken and all of the herbs.
Turn down heat to low and let simmer for at least 2 hours. Remove all froth on the surface of the soup.
Season with salt to taste, turn the heat back up and bring the soup to a boil before turning off the heat. Serve hot.
If herb ingredients are not easily obtained, there are pre-packed Premium Chinese Chicken Herbal soup mix available at Asian grocery stores.
Filipino Chicken Porridge (Arroz Caldo)
To Cook
Heat oil in a small pan over low heat. Gently cook the garlic until lightly golden. Dish out onto paper towels to drain off excess oil. Set aside.
Remove excess fats from chicken. Rinse and pat dry. Heat oil in a pot over medium heat and throw in onions, garlic and ginger. Stir constantly and cook until softened and fragrant.
Put in the chicken pieces and continue to stir fry until lightly browned. Pour in fish sauce and let it cook for 2 mins.
Pour in uncooked rice and stir constantly until lightly browned. Then, add in water and allow to boil. Remove any froth on the surface of the water. Drop in bouillon cubes and stir until dissolved. Bring the fire to a simmer and cook until porridge has thickened. Stir occasionally to keep porridge from sticking to the bottom. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Transfer to serving bowls and top with boiled egg, spring onions and fried garlic bits. Serve with a side of calamansi lime or lemon.
Baked Filipino Chicken (Lechon Manok)
To Prep
Rub salt and pepper all over the chicken, both skin side and cavity. Then rub garlic, ginger and soy sauce over the skin side only.
Fill the chicken cavity with stalks of lemon grass and bananas. Using aluminum foil, wrap the chicken firmly.
To Cook
Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celcius and roast the whole chicken for 1 hr. Once ready, carefully remove the foil and allow to roast for about 30 mins or until golden brown.
Serve chicken with sweet chilli sauce or dipping sauce of your choice.