Chinese Pumpkin Rice (Instant Pot, Rice Cooker, Stove-top) / Kiam Peng
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 624kcal
Flavorful rice are cooked with pumpkin, chicken, mushrooms, and Asian seasonings are easy and satisfying dish. The recipe can be made with Instant pot, rice cooker, or on the stove.
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups long-grain white rice use the rice cup
- 1 ½ cups liquid from soaking the mushrooms (top up with water if needed) if using pressure cooker or rice cooker
- 2 ¼ cups liquid from soaking the mushrooms (top up with water if needed) if cooking on the stove
- 350 gr boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 400 gr pumpkin cut into cubes
- 2 Tbsp dried shrimp
- 8 large dried shiitake mushrooms
- 3 Tbsp cooking oil
Marinade for chicken:
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- ½ tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tsp cooking wine
- 1 tsp cornstarch
Aromatics:
- 5 cloves garlic finely minced
Seasonings:
- 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp dark soy sauce
- ½ tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
- Salt to taste
Garnishes:
Instructions
Marinate the chicken:
- Cut the chicken into bite-size. Add ingredients for marinade and toss to combine. Let it marinate while you prepare other things
Prepare other things:
- You can peel the pumpkin and dice into large chunks (if you use pressure cooker). I usually wash the pumpkin skin really well as I don't peel the skin and usually cook with the skin. The skin is actually quite tasty after being cooked. I love it!
- Soak dried shrimp and dried shiitake mushrooms separately in warm water until they are soften. Save the liquid from soaking the mushrooms, top up with water if necessary. Finely chop the dried shrimp and cut the mushrooms into slices
Cooking with Instant Pot:
- Rinse the rice in several changes of water until they water runs clear. Drain off any excess water
- Press saute mode. When it's hot, add cooking oil. Saute the minced garlic for about 10 seconds. Add the dried shrimp and mushrooms and stir fry for another minute. Add the marinated chicken pieces and saute until they turn opaque but not cooked through yet. Add the rice followed by seasonings. Stir to mix everything. Turn off saute mode
- Splash with a tablespoon of water. Scrape the bottom of the pot to make sure nothing get stuck or it will trigger "burn" alert later. Add liquid (water + liquid from soaking the mushrooms). Stir to combine and make sure the rice are submerged in the liquid so they cook properly
- Add the pumpkin cubes on top. Cover with the lid and turn the pressure release valve to sealing. Press "Pressure cooker" and make sure it's on high pressure. Set the timer to 1 minute. When it's done, do natural release. Let the valve collapse on its own, which may take about 10 minutes or so
- Carefully unlock the lid and gently fluff the rice. If you see some uncooked rice grains, don't worry, close the lid back up and they will continue to "cook" while you use the "keep warm" function. Have a taste and adjust seasonings to your preference
Cooking with a rice cooker:
- Preheat a large skillet. When it's hot, add oil. Saute the minced garlic for about 10 seconds. Add the dried shrimp and mushrooms and stir fry for another minute. Add the marinated chicken pieces and saute until they turn opaque but not cooked through yet. Add the rice followed by seasonings. Stir to mix everything. Turn off the heat
- Transfer the rice and everything to the inner pot of rice cooker. Pour the liquid in. Stir to mix. Add pumpkin cubes on top. Press "cook" or use "white rice" function if there's one
- If your rice cooker has the function of telling you how much time left, you can add the pumpkin cubes 10 minutes before end of cooking time, so the pumpkin won't be overly mushy
- When it's done cooking, wait 10 minutes before opening the lid. Gently fluff the rice and have a taste. Adjust seasonings if necessary
Cooking on the stove:
- Use a heavy-bottom pot with a tight-fitting lid, something like a Dutch-oven. Don't use anything there's too thin, as the rice will get burnt at the bottom of the pot
- Preheat the pot. When it's hot, add oil. Saute the minced garlic for about 10 seconds. Add the dried shrimp and mushrooms and stir fry for another minute. Add the marinated chicken pieces and saute until they turn opaque but not cooked through yet. Add the rice followed by seasonings. Stir to mix everything
- Add the liquid and stir again to make sure nothing gets caught at the bottom of the pot. Bring to a boil and then cover the lid and lower the heat to let it simmer for the next 10 minutes. Add the pumpkin cubes on top of the rice and close the lid back and let them cook for another 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, but DO NOT open the lid. Let it sit for about 15 minutes to let the liquid get absorbed by the rice
- Then carefully uncover the lid and gently fluff the rice
To serve:
- Garnish with fried shallots and serve when it's warm
Video
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 624kcal | Carbohydrates: 88g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 169mg | Sodium: 1011mg | Potassium: 731mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 8534IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 96mg | Iron: 3mg
