Clay Pot Chicken and Rice

Step 1

Rinse the jasmine rice under cold running water in a fine-mesh strainer, tilting and stirring gently with your fingers until the water runs nearly clear, about 30 seconds, so the rice cooks fluffier without excess starch.

Step 2

Cut each chicken thigh into 2-inch chunks, cutting straight down through the meat across the grain, so they cook evenly and stay tender.

Step 3

Slice each mushroom cap lengthwise from the stem end into 1/4-inch-thick slices, so they soften and absorb the broth flavors as they cook.

Step 4

Peel the ginger with the edge of a spoon, then use a microplane grater to grate it into a small pile about the size of a grape on your cutting board.

Step 5

Add 2.5 cups of water to the clay pot and set it over medium-high heat until you see small bubbles streaming from the bottom and the surface shimmers, about 2 minutes.

Step 6

Add the 1.25 cups of rinsed jasmine rice, the chicken chunks, sliced mushrooms, and grated ginger to the hot water and stir once with a wooden spoon to distribute evenly.

Step 7

Once the surface begins a rolling boil with constant large bubbles breaking the surface, about 2 minutes, reduce the heat to medium-low and cover the pot with its lid.

Step 8

Let the pot simmer undisturbed for 15 minutes, until the liquid is completely absorbed and the rice is tender when you bite a grain, and the chicken is white throughout with no pink inside.

Step 9

Remove the pot from the heat and keep the lid on for 5 minutes so the rice finishes steaming in the residual heat.

Step 10

Pour the 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and 0.5 teaspoon of sesame oil evenly over the rice, then use a wooden spoon to gently fluff and mix everything together without crushing the rice grains.