Banana & Lotus Leaf Steamed Chicken
when you have the best ingredients, there's no need to do much..
we snuck behind the scenes into one of Singapore’s most POPULAR private dining houses, Lucky House Cantonese Private Kitchen - to learn the ropes on how authentic AND innovative Cantonese cuisine is made. Chef Sam who runs the private home restaurant from his house at Upper East Coast Road, was gracious & generous in revealing his recipe for a very SIMPLE dish of steamed chicken, wrapped in a combination of lotus and banana leaves.
shockingly, as easy as the recipe was, the end product was a delicious dish, which Chef Sam explained, was a result of using good quality chicken in its freshest state, and letting its natural flavours shine as they are, complemented by a light treatment of basic seasoning. the use of the leaves bring a signature earthy aroma to the eating experience. the resulting juices from the steamed chicken becomes a flavourful gravy which is delightful eaten with plain white or brown rice.
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Banana & Lotus Leaf Steamed Chicken
(serves 4)
1 corn-fed yellow chicken (OR use FRESH Kampong Chicken), cleaned well & head and feet removed
1 tbsp salt
1.5 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp Shaoxing Rice Wine (optional)
1 dried lotus leaf, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes
1 to 2 pieces banana leaves
directions
in a bowl, place the chicken, making sure it’s patted dry and not dripping in its own juices.
sprinkle salt all over the chicken and in the cavity. then, drizzle one soy sauce, peanut oil and rice wine (optional). use your hands to massage in all the seasoning, coating the chicken well. cover the bowl with cling wrap and let it marinade for 1 hour at room temperature.
lay down a big sheet of banana leaf onto a cutting board. layer a halved soaked lotus leaf onto the banana leaf. place the marinated whole chicken onto the lotus leaf and pour over the juices from the bottom of the bowl.
wrap the chicken tightly with the lotus leaf. and then, wrap with the banana leaf, making sure the whole chicken parcel is covered with banana leaf/leaves. tie it up using some twine.
in a steamer pot big enough to fit the chicken, bring water to a boil. place the tied up chicken onto the steamer rack and cover with a lid. turn down the heat to a simmer and cook for 3 hours.
after 3 hours, take the chicken out and let it rest for 20 minutes before unwrapping the leaves. cut the chicken into pieces & enjoy with steamed rice.