Herb Chicken Rice With Skin Crackling

1. 1

   Debone the whole chicken legs, then separate the skin from the meat. Scrape off excess fat lumps from the skin without tearing/breaking it. Marinate the meat and the skin with ginger, garlic, fish sauce and rice wine in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

2. 2

   In a food-processor or a stone mortar, first add shallots, garlic, kafir lime leaves and ginger, then grind until very finely minced. Then add mint, thai basil, cilantro and lime zest. Grind/pulse until the mixture becomes a pesto consistency. Move the pesto to a bowl, then mix in the minced chili and set aside.

3. 3

   Take the chicken out and discard any garlic/ginger pieces that's sticking to them. Heat up a skillet over medium-high heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Cook the chicken meat, a few minutes on both sides, until cooked through and slightly browned. Once cool enough to handle, shred the meats with your hands. Mix the shredded chicken with the herb pesto, then season with lime juice, fish sauce (add more than suggested if needed) and white pepper. Let it sit for at least 1 hour for the flavour to mingle/develop together.

4. 4

   30 min before serving. Preheat the oven on 420F/220C. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper, and lay the chicken skin down on the parchment paper in one single layer. Make sure there's no folds or overlapping. Lay another parchment paper on top (very importantly or the skin will stick to the pan) and press another sheet pan (that fits INSIDE the lower sheet pan) on top. Make sure the top sheet pan covers the area of both skins. Bake in the oven for 20 ~ 30 min, or until the skins are completely crispy. Place the skin on a cooling rack and season with some salt and ground white pepper.

5. 5

   Serve the herbed chicken on warm steamed rice, with a large piece of the crispy skin on top.

* Per serving · 4 servings · Values may vary.