The Filipino lady at the corner grocer smiled when she saw me and asked who I was buying all the food for. When I told her I was going to be doing the cooking, she smiled pensively, amused by the white guy buying banana leaves and jackfruit. This in turn made me smile from ear to ear.
Dinner tonight on this gloriously warm evening was opor ayam, or Javanese coconut gravy chicken. It's been far too long since I took the plunge and experimented with some Malay dishes again. This one turned out pretty well, despite my lack of Indonesian bay leaf (daun salam). (After a bit of research, I substituted some fresh curry leaves instead.)
As a huge coconut fan, this was a great dish to help alleviate some of my never-ending cravings for coconut.
1. To prepare, grind the following ingredients in a food processor with 1 tablespoon oil into a paste: 2 cloves garlic, 8 shallots, piece of fresh turmeric (I used powdered), 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, 2 tsp coriander powder, 4 candlenuts (I used macadamia nuts), 1/2 tsp fennel, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 inch of fresh ginger, 1 inch of fresh galangal (or increase amount of ginger). Marinate chicken in this mixture, preferably overnight in the refrigerator.
2. Heat peanut oil in a pan and fry a chopped shallot until it is dark and crispy. Place on paper towel and allow to dry. (This will be used as a topping when the opor ayam is done.)
3. Heat peanut oil in a pot and fry the marinated chicken pieces until they are firm. Stir in light coconut milk, remainder of spice marinade, 1 stalk of bruised lemongrass cut into pieces, a piece of cinnamon bark, 1 star anise, 2 Indonesian bay leaves (can substitute with curry leaves), 1 tsp tamarind juice. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until coconut milk thickens.
4. Add a little more coconut milk, preferably thick, and also three kaffir lime leaves. Simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes. Finally, add a little brown sugar and salt to taste, placing crispy shallots on top as a garnish. (I also topped mine with a bit of fresh kaffir lime leaves, just because I love their aroma and appearance so much.)
Comments
where do you get the almond milk that is listed in your the recipe?
Posted by: Gail H | April 8, 2006 10:20 AM
YUM!!!
Posted by: Rose | April 9, 2006 09:08 AM
Looks very YUM. you always tempt me evil Johnny. hehe
Posted by: Rathi | April 12, 2006 02:23 AM
//piece of fresh turmeric (I used powdered)//
John,
Have you tried growing turmeric. You could do the same with Galangal too. What with year round warm weather...
-Mathy
Posted by: Mathy | April 12, 2006 09:54 AM
GailH: I buy it at the Trader Joe's down the street.
Rose: It was very yum!!
Rathi: I do try my best. ;-)
Mathy: I'd really, really like to try growing turmeric! If I ever see one for sale, I'll buy it up in an instant. It'll be the most spoiled plant in my garden. Until I eat it, that is.
Posted by: Evil Jonny | April 12, 2006 06:39 PM
Thank you for sharing these recipes and I just wanna to say that opor ayam is Javanese Curry :) and not Malay Curry.
Posted by: coni | December 26, 2006 11:31 AM
Hi, I guess you cook more Indonesian foods than I do. I'm still learning how to cook those dishes. The foods look delicious and thanks for sharing the recipe here. Some of the shortcuts are also useful as I sometimes find it difficult to find some of the ingredients here.
Btw, in Central Java, when we make opor ayam, we don't use turmeric. The dish usually comes with more coconut milk (more liquid). It is sometimes served with gudeg.
Regards,
Regina
Posted by: Regina | December 2, 2007 03:47 PM