Sanpiau (Slow cooked ethnic rice porridge, fresh chicken, egg, sambal, cress)
Recipe by Chef Ankur Chakraborty, The Ritz Carlton Bengaluru
Sanpiau is another form of comfort food that finds itself in all cultures across borders. This is essentially a rice congee from the northeastern state of Mizoram. An ethnic form of rice that is so delicate that it is almost edible once it is soaked is used to make this preparation. This rice is slow cooked with a country chicken traditionally however we use fresh chicken from the local UAE farms. In the slow cooking process, we add flavorful herbs from the region like lemongrass ethnic ginger which looks like galangal but it’s more of a ginger. While we were training for the restaurant some of our team members who hail from Myanmar came across this dish and said that it is also called Sanpiau in their native country. You see the idea of crossing goes beyond borders the state of Mizoram touches China on the north Myanmar on the east and southeast Asia on the south. In fact historically Myanmar was called Burma and was a very important port of trade and a very important city of trade called Rangoon. All of this was one big sub continental India which is presently separated by political borders. Food knows no borders and it is represented so well in this dish.
INGREDIENTS
FOR SANPIAU
- Rice Jasmine 100gm
- Water 1.25 Liter
- Lime Leaves 2 No.
- Lemon Grass 5 Gm
- Galangal 8 Gm
- Salt To Taste
- Chicken Thigh Boneless 100 Gm
FOR SAMBAL SAUCE
- Chopped Spring Onion 50 Gm
- Chopped Fresh Onion 5 Gm
- Finely Minced Ginger Fresh 10 Gm
- Dry Chili Soaked And Pasted Kashmiri Red Chilli Paste 10 Gm
- Chopped Coriander Leaves Fresh 15 Gm
- Sunflower Oil / Garlic Oil 20 Ml
- Chilli Flakes 5 Gm
- Soya Sauce Light Le Kum Kee 150 Ml
- Palm Vineger 30 Gm
- Sugar 5/ 2 Gm
METHOD:
FOR SAMBAL SAUCE:
- Mix all the ingredients and bring to a slow simmer.
- Adjust the seasoning and cool for future use.
FOR SANPIAU:
- Soak the jasmine rice and leave overnight.
- Wash the rice under cold running water for 15 minutes and put on a stock pot for boiling.
- Add all the herbs and chicken thighs in it.
- Slow cook for about 3 hours adding water as and when needed.
- Adjust the salt.
- Serve hot with addition of the sambal sauce and a soft poached egg.
About Chief Ankur Chakraborty:
With a degree in Hotel and Hospitality Management, Ankur has 16+ years experience in high-impact leadership roles in the Food & Beverages Industry, both as a Chef and as a business leader. He was GM of Tablez food company, UAE, a subsidiary of the retail conglomerate LuLu Group. He was instrumental in driving profitability through sustainable dining concepts and from 2015 grew the portfolio from 3 brands, 90 team strength to almost 35 restaurants across 8 brands with nearly 800 team strength by 2020.
On Thursday, 29th September 2022 at Ritz Carlton Bengaluru, Chef Ankur will showcase regional classics that are borrowed from generations such as Thupka; an 18-hour slow-cooked beef broth, with noodles, mushrooms and black garlic. Butter Chicken, presented in its unbiased, original avatar. Mangalorean Bun, Scallop Bean Thoran – blend of edamame beans, coconut and chilli, Mutton Pulav – a quintessential Indian homemade dish to name a few.
