Claypot Rice (or bo zai fan in Cantonese) is a humble rich dish with an incredibly deep and complex flavor profile. We can trace the modern claypot rice dish to ancient China where people used claypots over fire, traditionally charcoal to cook rice. By using a claypot, we can infuse the rice with rich flavors, unlike in modern rice cookers because rice in a claypot can "breathe" through pores in the clay. In Hong Kong, street vendor chefs prepare a classic claypot rice steaming scallions, ginger, Gailan, marinated chicken, marinated mushrooms, and Chinese Sausage while simultaneously cooking the rice below. In doing so, the flavor from the toppings slowly seeps into the rice to develop a gently seasoned bed of fluffy white rice. The most iconic component of the dish and the most technically challenging part of the dish sits at the bottom of the bowl: the charred rice. Chefs must carefully rotate the bowl to char the rice at the bottom of the claypot so that a crispy layer can form. The timing must be perfect. If the rice is not charred enough, the iconic crunchy rice will not form. But if the rice is charred too long, the rice will burn and taint the smell of the dish. For this recipe, I will cover the core elements of a classic claypot rice and provide guidance as to how you can mimic the flavors of Hong Kong street food at home. I hope you enjoy!
