Ginger Scallion Sauce Poultry in Motion

I went to the city to grab a bite to eat with my kid Jeffrey and my Mom. Jeffrey suggested a joint that serves poached chicken and rice. Loves it; goes there all the time.

I said, ” You’re KIDDING, right?  Not that I don’t like chicken, but this sounds a whole lot like Chinese White Cut Chicken or Singaporean Hainan Chicken, which I make ALL the TIME. Yep, same dish, but served in a hipster space with people willing to wait in line and pay gobs of money for. REALLY?!

Chicken-Schmicken

White cut chicken is down-home comfort food, you can either get it at hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurants or buy it at a Chinese deli to take home.  It’s the pale chicken usually hanging by its neck in the window, lol.  But to become the star of a menu and be served in a cool space in the middle of Hipsterville? Who would have thought something as simple as poached chicken would become all the rage? Rooster and Rice, recently opened in the Marina, is my kid’s go-to place. Chicken, white rice (ok, you can probably get brown rice), and a dipping sauce. It comes with a bit of broccoli or cucumbers, and a bowl of chicken soup. BUT that’s all. Sheesh.

Why didn’t I think of that?

I did a bit of sleuthing (hello Google) and concluded that ground zero for poached chicken rising to rock-star status is Portland, at Nong’s Khao Man Gai Food Truck. Nong P. got her start as a line chef at the popular Thai restaurant Pok Pok.  She left to go on the road in a food truck serving her chicken and rice. The truck was wildly popular, and she was able to open a brick-and-mortar place of the same name. Rooster and Rice also serves the Thai version.  Its dipping sauce is bean-based and is sweet, salty, and spicy.  Delicious. The dipping sauce for Hainan or Chinese white cut chicken is salt or soy sauce, with ginger and scallions doused with smokin’ hot oil. Yummmmmmm.

I am partial to the ginger scallion sauce which I have posted with my Simple Poached Chicken recipe, but I did want to try David Chang’s (Momofuku) Ginger Scallion Sauce. His recipe has made the rounds on  Epicurious, Saveur, Bon Appétit’s website, your auntie’s blog, EVERYWHERE.  All wax poetically about it. It’s good on everything, even slathered on your skin, apparently. So, I made it, and it’s good alright, but is it Nirvana?  Hmm.  It is ridiculously easy and extremely versatile.  It is lovely on noodles, fish, your kids if they forget their sunblock (I’M KIDDING), on grilled tofu or mushrooms (yay for vegetarians), and of course CHICKEN. It’s the perfect pairing, like Fred and Ginger (my fav). Similar to the sauce for Hainan Chicken or White Cut Chicken, it starts with ginger, scallions, and salt and soy sauce, but unlike mine, the oil is not heated, and it includes a touch of vinegar. I leave it to you to pick which is your favorite. Definitely make the chicken (it’s incredibly delicious and easy) and try the different sauces.  Love to know which is your favorite.