Rendang Ayam Anne (Anne's Chicken Rendang)

2021, Hari Raya, MCO.... but that will not stop us from making our favourite Raya dish at any point of life (even if we are staying away from our family, but lucky me I am staying with my family.. whew)

This dish is worth all the time cause it is savory, sweet, spicy, and everything you want to eat with rice. Without further ado, check out the recipe below!

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Serving: 7-10 pax (or even more)

Prep time: 2-2.5 hours

Ingredients:

• 1.5 - 2 kg chicken parts (chopped, and cleaned)

• 1.5 cups thick coconut

• 1 liter of freshly squeezed coconut (diluted with water)

• 1 coconut, white part, and grated (for kerisik)

• 7 kaffir lime leaves, sliced thinly

• 2 turmeric leaves, sliced thinly

• Salt to taste

• Brown sugar (preferably dark) to taste

Rempah (spices)

• A handful of dried chilies, soaked (the more, the spicier)

• 3-5 fresh red chilies, seeded

• 5 Thai shallots

• 1 Bombay onion

• 4-5 garlic cloves

• 10 lemongrass stalk (add more if they are skinny)

• 4cm ginger

• 4cm galangal

• 3cm fresh turmeric

Preparation:

• Blend in all the rempah (spices) ingredients with a small amount of water until quite fine (with bits of lemongrass still visible).

• Heat up a deep pan, with medium-high heat, and add vegetable oil. Once it is hot, pour in the blended spices and stir it for a good 2-3 minutes.

• Add in chicken and stir well, but slowly. Then add in the diluted fresh coconut milk and let it simmer for about 15 minutes or until it is slightly reduced.

• Add in the thick coconut milk and occasionally stir well until it is reduce further (may take another 15-30 minutes).

• Add in kerisik and stir well. (Fresh kerisik is made by roasting the grated white part of the coconut until it is golden brown, as seen in the image. Then blend it until it is very fine).

• Add sugar and salt to taste.

• When the gravy has thickened and oil rises to the top, add in the kaffir lime leaves and turmeric leaves and cook it until it is further reduced and thick.

And there you have it!

Enjoy :)