If you have been to Thailand, you probably have seen Khao Man Gai (Thai Chicken and Rice) stalls, restaurants, or in food courts. They’re basically everywhere. It’s one of their famous street food of all time. Definitely not a fad, it’s a classic like American mac & cheese. To easily spot them in any city in Thailand, look for the glass window with whole pale chickens hanging.
What is Khao Man Gai?
It is basically poached chicken and seasoned rice, served with ginger chili sauce and usually with cucumber and broth. It is very close to Hainanese Chicken Rice, which was created by immigrants from Hainan in southern China. It is a famous dish in Southeast Asia, also considered one of the national dishes of Singapore.
I have been to Singapore, so I have had both Hainanese Chicken Rice and the Thai Khao Man Gai. The rice and chicken are similar but the sauces are different. Personally, and you can guess why, because I’m from Thailand, I love the Thai style. To me, it is the sauce that makes the whole dish shine. Just like other food, everyone has their own way of making it. Let me show you my easy version.
The chicken and broth
I like using chicken thighs that are already cut up. You can use whole chicken but it will take much longer. Why thighs? Because they are meaty and juicy, but breasts are fine, too. Just make sure they are bone-in, skin-on. It is essential for making the flavorful broth and rice. For the broth, I use garlic, onion, cilantro, salt and pepper. That’s it. Super simple. You can add ginger, root veggies like daikon or winter melon. We’re flexible here.
The rice
Thai Jasmin rice
The sauce
Just like every mom or grandma, everyone has their own way of making it. My version has Dark Sweet Soy Sauce
I tried many brands of Soybean Paste
Let’s cook some food!
Add the chicken, onion, garlic, celery, cilantro, salt, pepper to a large pot, add water enough to cover the chicken. Bring it to a boil and lower the heat to low and let it simmer until the chicken is cooked. About 20-30 minutes.
Skim foam off the top but leave most of the fat.
Make the rice. Wash the Jasmin rice in tap water in the rice cooker bowl. Use your hand and gently swirl the rice in the water, get rid of the starch water and repeat 5-6 times until the water is clear. Try to get rid of the water as much as you can, as we’ll be using broth instead.
Add chicken broth to the rice, try to get all the fat from the top in. I used 2 cups of rice and 2 cups of broth.
Cook the rice in the rice cooker. Mine took about 25 minutes.
If you can find daikon or winter melon, add them to the broth. Simmer and let them cook until soft but not mushy.
In the meantime, make the sauce. Mix minced garlic, ginger, Thai chilis, sugar, Dark Sweet Soy Sauce, Soybean Paste and lime juice in a bowl. Taste it. It should taste salty, sweet and tangy. If you use a different brand of Soybean paste, it might be saltier than mine. Start with less and add later, if needed.
That’s it. Take the chicken out of the broth and let them cool down a little bit. Carefully take the skin off and remove the chicken from the bone. Cut the chicken into pieces. Serve with rice, broth and cucumber slices. Garnish with some cilantro (optional). Enjoy!
I really hope your give my Khao Man Gai (Thai Chicken and Rice) a try. It’s simple and delish. The recipe card is below.
- For the chicken and chicken broth:
- 4 large bone-in skin-on chicken thighs or breasts
- 1 whole garlic, cut in half
- 1 whole onion, quartered
- 4-5 sprigs of cilantro
- 1 celery stalk, cut into big pieces
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 4-5 cups of water (enough to cover the chicken)
- 1 daikon, sliced (optional)
- 1 winter melon, cut into 1x2-inch pieces (optional)
- For the rice:
- 2 cups good Jasmin rice
- 2 cups chicken broth
- For the sauce (about 1 cup):
- 6 tablespoons Soybean Paste
- 1 tablespoon Dark Sweet Soy Sauce
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- ½ tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Thai chilis
- 2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
- Side and garnish:
- cucumber slices
- cilantro (optional)
- Add the chicken, onion, garlic, celery, cilantro, salt, pepper to a large pot, add water enough to cover the chicken. Bring it to a boil and lower the heat to low and let it simmer until the chicken is cooked. About 20-30 minutes. Skim foam off the top but leave most of the fat.
- Make the rice. Wash the Jasmin rice in tap water in the rice cooker bowl. Use your hand and gently swirl the rice in the water, get rid of the starch water and repeat 5-6 times until the water is clear. Try to get rid of the water as much as you can, as we'll be using broth instead.
- Add chicken broth to the rice, try to get all the fat from the top in. Cook the rice in the rice cooker.
- If you can find daikon or winter melon, add them to the broth. Simmer and let them cook until soft but not mushy.
- Make the sauce. Mix minced garlic, ginger, Thai chilis, sugar, Dark Sweet Soy Sauce, Soybean Paste and lime juice in a bowl. Taste it. It should taste salty, sweet and tangy. If you use a different brand of Soybean paste, it might be saltier than mine. Start with less and add later, if needed.
- Take the chicken out of the broth and let them cool down a little bit. Carefully take the skin off and remove the chicken from the bone. Cut the chicken into pieces. Serve with rice, broth and cucumber slices. Garnish with some cilantro (optional). Enjoy!
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