History

Khao man gai came to Bangkok with Hainanese Chinese immigrants in the late 19th century, settling around Pratunum and Silom. Go-Ang Pratunam opened on Petchaburi Road in 1960 with pink-uniformed staff still slicing chicken behind the counter today, and earned Michelin Bib Gourmand status when the guide launched in Thailand in 2018. The dish bridges Hainanese poached-chicken technique with Thai chilli-and-ginger sauces, and now operates as the canonical office-lunch order across the entire city.

Common allergens: Soy, Fish sauce, Ginger

Make it at home

Yield Serves 4Hands-on 30 minTotal 90 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken (1.5 to 1.8kg)
  • 30g ginger, sliced thick
  • 4 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 1 large pandan leaf, knotted
  • 3 tbsp salt
  • 400g Thai jasmine rice, washed
  • 30g chicken fat (skin trimmed from the cavity), rendered
  • Sauce: 4 tbsp fermented soy bean paste (tao jiao), 2 tbsp dark soy, 3 garlic cloves, 5 bird's-eye chillies, 2 tbsp ginger, 2 tbsp lime juice, 1 tsp sugar
  • Cucumber slices and coriander, to serve

Method

  1. In a large pot, bring 4L water to a gentle simmer. Add ginger, garlic, pandan and 2 tbsp salt.
  2. Lower the whole chicken in breast-down. Adjust heat so the water barely shudders. Poach 35 to 45 minutes until juices run clear.
  3. Lift chicken into iced water for 5 minutes to firm the skin. Reserve the stock.
  4. Render the chicken fat in a wok. Add the rice and stir-fry 2 minutes. Add 600ml of the reserved stock plus 1 tsp salt. Cover and cook 12 minutes, then rest 10.
  5. Make the sauce: pound the garlic, chillies and ginger in a mortar. Stir in the tao jiao, soy, lime juice and sugar.
  6. Carve the chicken. Plate over the rice with cucumber and coriander. Serve the broth, the sauce and the rice as three separate elements on the side.

Tip from the editors. The poaching liquid is the rice's flavour and the soup. Skim the fat for the rice, save the broth for serving.

This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.

Where to eat khao man gai

Khao Man Gai in Bangkok

Go-Ang Pratunam Chicken Rice ★ 4.5

Go-Ang Pratunam in Bangkok is the pink-uniform chicken-rice counter on Petchaburi, Bib Gourmand since 2018 with khao man gai plates under 100 baht since 1960.

Try: Khao man gai Hainanese chicken rice

Tip: Cash only. Queues from 10:00 to 14:00 then 16:00 to 21:00. The original Pratunam location, six total branches in the city.

960 Petchaburi Road, Ratchathewi, Bangkok 10400

Khao Man Gai in Portland

Nong's Khao Man Gai ★ 4.5

hawthorne-belmont

Nong Poonsukwattana's $12 khao man gai counter on SE Ankeny in Portland, the canonical Thai chicken-and-rice plate that put her name on the city food map.

Try: Khao man gai poached chicken and rice

Tip: The ginger-soy sauce is the point. Extra sauce is $1.50; order it.

609 SE Ankeny St, Ste C, Portland, OR 97214

More cities are in research. Want khao man gai covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.

Browse all dishes →