Opor Ayam

Opor Ayam is the name of one of our family’s new favorite comfort foods. We had it for lunch today and mmmmm! What a treat! I’ll give you the recipe to try on your own. You should be able to get most of the ingredients, if not all of them, at either the grocery store or at your local Asian market. (Milwaukee has a number of places you could get these ingredients. If you need directions, let me know!) We love chunks of carrot and potato in the broth as well. The way we eat it is: we put rice into our bowl, then add the broth and vegetables and chunks of chicken. I usually take the chicken off the bone post-cooking so that it’s easier for the kids to eat.

Opor Ayam (Chicken in Coconut Milk)

Ingredients (Serves 4-6)
1.5kg (3lb) roasting chicken or chicken pieces
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1½ teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger
3 kemiri or brazil nuts, finely grated
3 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground fennel
½ teaspoon laos powder (optional) (or 1/2” of galangal, peeled)
4 tablespoons oil
2 medium onions, finely sliced
2 cups thin coconut milk
6 curry leaves
1 stem lemon grass or 3 strips thinly peeled lemon rind
5cm (2 inch) piece cinnamon stick
1½ cups thick coconut milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice or tamarind liquid
extra salt to taste

Divide chicken into serving pieces. In a small bowl (food processor or mortar & pestle), combine garlic, salt, pepper, ginger, nuts, coriander, cumin, fennel and laos (if used). Mix to a paste, adding a little of the oil if necessary. Rub paste well into the pieces of chicken and leave for 1 hour.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan and fry the sliced onion slowly until golden brown. Drain from oil and set aside. Add remaining oil to pan and fry the spiced chicken pieces gently, just until they start to colour. Add thin coconut milk, curry leaves, lemon grass (or rind) and cinnamon stick. Stir until it comes to the boil, then cook uncovered for 30 minutes or until chicken is tender. Add thick coconut milk, stir thoroughly and cook for a further 15 minutes. Remove from heat, add lemon juice and season to taste with extra salt. Remove whole spices. Garnish with fried onions (can use French's onions in a can - we use shallots fried crispy) and serve the chicken with white rice, vegetables and sambals (hot sauces).
Enjoy!