Category: Poultry

Asian Dishes, Poultry

Lemak Ayam Chilli Padi (Chicken in Spicy Coconut Milk)

7shasha7

Today we had an exorbitant lunch at Hei Sushi. Feeling rather guilty but extremely satiated ( we love Japanese food!) I decided to cook a very simple dish for dinner. It’s actually a kampong dish and there are several methods to cooking it though the ingredients are largely the same. The way I cook it (well, the way I was taught to do it) is to boil the rempah, or spice paste, together with the chicken in the pot.. But I know of many other families who would fry the rempah first. To each their own. My version is definitely more ‘kampong-y’ as there’s a lot of thin gravy and extremely spicy (since you don’t fry the rempah). I literally pour the entire bowl of gravy onto my rice – much like eating soup with rice. This is also a family favourite dish, and one I’d make at least once a month (well, at least before the baby came into the picture). 

Ingredients

1. 2 onions (or 1, if it’s like a freakily large one)

2. 2-3 garlic cloves

3. Fresh turmeric

4. a knob of ginger

5. belacan

6. chilli padi (about 14, or much less if you can’t take the heat :p)

7. Lemongrass

8. Kaffir Lime leaves

9. Assam gelugur (Assam fruit? Picture available for reference)

10. Coconut Milk (packet or freshly squeezed)

Method

 

 

 

Blend or pound Items 1-6. I already have blended ginger paste and ground belacan which I added into the blender.

 

Pour blended ingredients into the pot of chicken. Add water to cover all of the chicken and let cook till the chicken pieces are half done. Oh, throw in the lemongrass.

 

Add in one packet of coconut cream. In the past, lots of people would use freshly squeezed coconut milk. Now, a 70 cent packet like the one above would suffice.

 

Once coconut is added, make sure the heat is low. Add in the kaffir lime leaves, assam piece and salt.

 

I added in baby tomatoes but the traditional sour ingredient is to add in belimbing - local baby starfruit.

 

This dish is fragrant and ignites all your senses, well, just your tastebuds then. It’s very spicy, yet the assam gelugur adds a slightly sour taste to cut the richness of the coconut milk.  And the kaffir lime leaves add a wonderful mild fresh lime fragrance to the  dish. Mmmmm…

Oh, this is what assam gelugur looks like.

I cut down my sugar/fat intake by eating this with a plate of basmati rice. Try it if you’ve never eaten this dish before. 

Lemak Ayam Chilli Padi: Only 20 minutes to cook!
Poultry

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

7shasha7

When I was in my early 20s (incidentally which was just a few short years ago), I chanced upon this wonderful American Family recipe book in a library. I can’t remember which library it was, but I do remember the constant reminders to return the book. I loved many of the recipes inside – one of them, Buttermilk Fried Chicken, that I couldn’t bear to return the book. But my conscience was pricking me and a few months later, I decided to go to the library, pay up the outstanding fines, and then, sheepishly, told the librarian I had lost the book. The librarian, a woman in her early forties, looked at me sceptically. She gave a small smile, said she’ll check out the actual cost of the book, and ten minutes and fifty plus dollars poorer later, I went back home. I walked away feeling happy that I had paid for the book that I so badly wanted to keep (and stomped on the little angel who kept whispering what a liar I was).

Each time I felt a Southern fried chicken craving (this was before the days of Popeye’s), I would go down to Cold Storage and buy a carton of buttermilk to fry my chicken. Yesterday, since I already have a carton in my fridge, I decided to go Southern.

Marinade chicken pieces in buttermilk for at least an hour

 

In a bag, add plain flour seasoned with salt and black pepper. Coat the chicken pieces in the flour and let to rest for a few minutes before frying in shallow vegetable oil till juices run clear.

 

Serve with a side dish like potato and frankfurter salad

 

Honestly, one whole chicken is not enough for even two so I’d suggest using two whole chickens for more than two people. (The chickens here are pretty small anyway) ;p