CHICKEN STEWED WITH RICE AND GINSENG – SAMGYETANG

Serve 4
Preparation time : 30 minutes
Cooking time : 65 minutes




Korean traditionally eat this hearty soup in the scorching days of summer, believing that ginseng helps the body cope with heat and fight off fatigue. In addition to its rumored medicinal properties, the famous root lends a slight bitterness that compliments the sweet red dates and chestnuts, resulting in a dish that’s flavorful as well as healthy.


INGREDIENTS:
1 fresh chicken about 1 ¼ kg
100g uncooked glutinous rice, washed, soaked for 30 minutes and drained
4 small ginseng roots, or 1 tbsp red ginseng powder
4 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
4 dried Chinese red dates, pitted
4 dried chestnuts, peeled
2 liters water, or enough water to cover
2 spring onions, finely chopped
6 cm fresh ginger root, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tsp salt or to taste
¼ tsp ground white pepper

HOW TO MAKE:
1. Clean the chicken, removing as much fat as possible, then drain and pat dry with paper towels.
2. In a bowl, combine the glutinous rice, ginseng roots, garlic,red dates and chestnuts, and mix well. Stuff the mixture into the chicken’s body cavity and then sew up the opening with a needle and thread.
3. Place the chicken in a large pot with the water, it should be completely submerged. Add the spring onions and ginger (as well as the ginseng powder if you’re not using fresh roots), cover and bring to a boil over the heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 1 hour until tender, taking care not to remove the lid. Season with the salt and pepper and remove from the heat. Skim off any fat that floats to the surface of the soup and transfer to a large soup tureen.
4. To serve, remove the thread and spoon the cooked rice mixture out into four serving bowls. Using a knife and fork, remove the chicken meat from the bones and divide equally among the four bowls. Ladle the hot broth over and serve hot with kimchi if desired.