My family and I love steamed whole chicken and our go-to is always Loong Kong Chicken 龍崗雞, part of the specialty Asian chickens raised right here in British Columbia. We just find Asian chickens more suitable for our style of cooking, when we tend to cook more Asian-inspired dishes. If you remember, last year I shared a recipe of Steamed Chicken with Spicy Green Onion Broth and it’s one of my favourite ways of how Mama Lam steams a whole chicken. The chicken is tender and flavourful, and it’s even better overnight as leftovers.
Did you know?
All BC chickens raised for their meat are allowed to roam in the barns and are considered “free run.” Also, no hormones or steroids are fed to BC chickens.
Recently, we have discovered steaming chicken in an Instant Pot or any pressure cooker. The meat is juicier and more moist, and it frees up a spot on the stove top. This would be especially beneficial come this summer if we experience yet another heat wave; it will take the heat off cooking on a stove top while still enjoying some delicious steamed chicken.
One of the chicken dishes I sometimes miss is Salt Baked Chicken 鹽焗雞. I have always loved the complex flavours on the chicken despite its deceivingly plain appearance. It’s also not something you often find at restaurants these days. So Mama Lam has come up with an easy recipe to create something similar using Instant Pot. It only takes 8 minutes inside the pressure cooker, 30 minutes if you include the building up and releasing of pressure. And the best of all, there are only 5 ingredients in this recipe and they are all pantry staples!
Ingredients
- 1 whole Loong Kong Chicken 走地龍崗雞 (1.3kg-1.4kg to fit inside the Instant Pot)
- 2 teaspoon Salt
- 2 teaspoon Sesame Oil
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground White Pepper
Note: The size of the chicken matters in this case because it impacts the cook time. We have experimented with various sizes and for this specific recipe, we recommend somewhere between 1.3kg and 1.4kg.
Instructions
Tip: It’s important to clean the Loong Kong Chicken thoroughly. This is basically the first step in every dish we cook using a whole chicken. It prevents any blood bleeding into the chicken when steaming, ensuring a clear, beautiful chicken broth for later!
How? Remove the chicken head, trim the excess skin, fat and tissue around the neck, and remove the chicken feet. Make sure to check the cavity of the chicken from the tail end and thoroughly clean the inside of the chicken, remove any guts and leftover organ tissues.
1. Clean the chicken. Mix salt, ground white pepper and garlic powder together, and rub the mixture inside and outside of the chicken as well as underneath the skin (if possible). Let sit for at least 30 minutes to marinate.
Tip: If you decide to marinate the chicken for longer and keep it in the fridge, make sure to take it out of the fridge ahead of time. The temperature of the chicken affects the building up of pressure in the Instant Pot.
2. Place a steaming rack inside the Instant Pot. Add water to just below the top of the track (so the chicken wouldn’t touch the water). Tie the legs together with kitchen twine. Place the chicken directly on the steaming rack.
3. Use the Meat/Stew feature, cook the chicken for 8 minutes.
Note: The actual cook time is about 30 minutes including the building up and release of pressure.
4. Once the pressure is released, take the chicken out and set it on a plate. Brush some sesame oil on the chicken then let cool.
5. Cut the chicken in pieces (we use poultry scissors) and serve!
Tip: There will be a small amount of chicken broth gathered in the Instant Pot. You can save it for soup or noodles later!
Final Thoughts
It’s amazing how much flavour can be imparted with so little cooking time. If you want an even more complex taste, you can add some five spice powder to the seasoning mix, and/or add a couple slices of ginger and some green onion inside the chicken when steaming. Seriously, this chicken is so flavourful and juicy, we have finished it in one sitting with a few other dishes barely touched on the table.
All BC chicken farmers participate in Chicken Farmers of Canada’s Animal Care program, a standard with a strong set of program requirements, annual audits, mandatory regulations, and enforcement measures. Canadian chicken barns are thoroughly cleaned between each flock. For more information on BC chickens, visit bcchicken.ca.
BC Chicken Tip: Before you start, wash all surfaces and your hands with soap and warm water, and remember to wash your hands, utensils and cutting boards after they touch raw meat or eggs. Avoid cross-contamination by using a different cutting board for your meat and other ingredients. Make sure you’re cooking to safe temperatures and chilling any leftovers within two hours. For more food safety tips, visit Chicken Farmers of Canada’s Food Safety at Home Section. Chicken should always be cooked through until the internal temperature has reached 165°F (74°C) when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken.
Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post. However, the recipe and opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.
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