Fragrant and healthy, this life-giving Korean Ginseng Chicken soup will send joy flowing though your veins with every delicious spoonful. And who doesn't love a soup where EVERYONE gets their own chicken!?
In a bowl, rinse the rice in cold water and drain a couple of times, until the water runs clear. Fill the bowl back up with cold water and soak the rice for one hour. Drain then set aside.
Remove any giblets from the Cornish hens. Keep for stock!
Using a pair of scissors, trim some of the fat from around the cavity.
Place 4 cloves garlic into the cavity and then top with rice until about ¾ full. Do the same with the other hen.
Using a sharp knife, pierce the skin, left and right, of the cavity. Carefully push a drumstick into the opposite slit i.e. right drumstick into left hole and left drumstick into the righ hole. This will seal the cavity a bit. Alternatively, you can seal with a toothpick.
Place in a pan, big enough fit the two hens snugly. Top with about 9 cups water and the salt.
Add all the soup kit ingredients (I use a spice bag, so that I don’t need to drain later, but this is optional). Bring to a boil then reduce the heat so that the soup is lightly simmering. Pop on a lid and cook for 1 hour.
While the chicken is cooking - make a dipping sauce
Combine the salt, pepper, sesame oil and sesame seeds. Set aside.
Finishing the soup
Remove soup from the heat. Carefully remove each Cornish hen and set aside. Remove the spice bag (if you didn’t use one, fish out all soup kit ingredients with a slotted spoon or strain).
Place a hen in an Asian soup bowl and then top with hot broth. Sprinkle with spring onion and serve with the dipping sauce on the side.
Video
Notes
You may have broth leftover, simply poach a chicken breast and pull apart into strands to add, or use leftover roast chicken to add to the broth.