Ah, ayam masak merah. A firm favourite of Malaysians everywhere.
No matter the time of the year, this dish has sealed its place as one of the classics in the Malaysian cookbook. But now that it’s Ramadan, expect to find this dish literally everywhere.
Whether at a kenduri or at your best friend’s house, it’s the kind of dish that stays with you and beckons you back time and time again.
Flavours and pairings
Sweet, sour and spicy all at once. It’s brought to life by the fragrant tint of lemongrass and the herbaceousness of galangal. Best served with a good helping of jasmine rice and sayur lodeh.
Ingredients
To fry
- 1 whole chicken (or 1.5kg chicken)
- 1.5 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp salt
To blend (rempah)
- 3-5 red chillies
- 8-12 dried red chillies
- 2 medium red onions
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 inch piece galangal (lengkuas)
- 2 stalks lemongrass (white lower stalks only, finely sliced)
To cook
- 6-8 kaffir lime leaves
- 2 stalks lemongrass (green tops only, tied into knots)
- 1 medium onion, sliced rounds
- 1 medium tomato, cut into wedges
- 2.5 teaspoons tomato paste
- 0.5 tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1.5 teaspoons gula melaka (palm sugar)
Method
- Add turmeric powder and salt to the chicken. Toss well to coat evenly. Heat 5 tablespoons of oil in a wok or deep pot on a medium flame. Then fry the chicken in stages, allowing about 5 minutes per batch or until golden. Remove the chicken from the pan and set it aside.
- Blend the rempah (spice paste) ingredients until fine. Then add the blended rempah, kaffir lime leaves and green lemongrass tops to the same pot. Allow the rempah to cook gently on a low-medium fire, stirring throughout for 10 minutes or until the oil begins to split.
- Add the chicken, tomato, tomato paste, dark soy, gula melaka and salt. Stir to combine, then cover and allow to cook on a medium flame for another 10 minutes. Finally, check for salt (add if needed) then add sliced onions, cook for another 5 minutes and it is ready to serve.
@theorangesieve serves up recipes from the heart, inspired by travels near and far. It’s all about food that humbly invites you to discover the truth about flavour, that is: the people, the culture and the stories behind them. The kind of food that leaves you with a smile for reasons you can’t quite put your finger on.