Ingredients

For the Chicken

• 1.83 lbs / 830 g boneless skinless chicken thighs

• 2 tbsp / 30 ml hot sesame oil

• 3½ tbsp / 52 ml soy sauce

• 1 tbsp / 7 g white pepper

• 1 tbsp / 8 g five spice

• 9 cloves garlic, minced

For the Garlic Rice

• 3 cups / 555 g Nishiki medium grain rice, washed

• 3¼ cups / 780 ml water

• 1½ tbsp / 14 g adobo seasoning

• ¾ tbsp / 6 g garlic powder

• 3 tbsp / 45 ml soy sauce

• 1 stalk scallion, thinly sliced

• Furikake, for topping

For the Curry Sauce

• 1 tbsp / 15 ml neutral oil

• 2 tbsp / 28 g butter

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced

• 7 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 tbsp / 6 g fresh ginger, grated

• 1 tbsp / 7 g curry powder

• 2 tsp / 5 g garam masala

• 1 tsp / 3 g ground turmeric

• 1 tsp / 2 g cumin seeds

• 1 tsp / 2 g ground coriander

• 1 can / 13.5 oz / 400 ml full fat coconut milk

• Salt to taste

Method

1. Marinate the Chicken: Combine the chicken thighs with the hot sesame oil, soy sauce, white pepper, five spice, and garlic. Mix well and marinate for at least 30 minutes.

2. Cook the Rice: Wash the Nishiki rice until the water runs clear. Combine with water, adobo seasoning, and garlic powder in a rice cooker. Cook according to the rice cooker's instructions. Once done, stir in the soy sauce and sliced scallion. Set aside.

3. Pan Fry the Chicken: Heat a pan over medium-high heat with a drizzle of oil. Add the chicken in batches and pan fry for 6–8 minutes per side until golden and cooked through. Set aside.

4. Build the Curry Sauce: In the same pan, heat the oil and butter over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until softened. Add the garlic and ginger and sauté until fragrant. Add the curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, cumin seeds, and ground coriander. Cook for 1–2 minutes until fragrant and well combined. Pour in the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes until slightly thickened. Season with salt to taste. Blend for a smoother sauce if desired.

5. Serve: Slice or serve the chicken whole over the garlic rice. Spoon the curry sauce over the top. Finish with a drizzle of sesame oil and furikake over the rice.

Additional Notes

The Sauce: I'm going to be straightforward — this sauce was inedible. Bitter, earthy, too thick, and the spices were just too forward. They don't seem to work together in these quantities, or maybe at all. I've attempted this sauce twice now and it's failed both times. I genuinely don't know what went wrong, but the recipe is posted as-is for reference. Make it at your own risk, or better yet, don't.

The Rice: I had already started making the garlic rice before realizing how involved it was going to be, so I scrapped it and just did plain white rice with furikake on top. It is what it is.

Overall: The chicken was solid, the rice and broccoli were fine, but the sauce is what's supposed to make this dish — and that went straight in the garbage. Back to the drawing board on this one.