Opor Ayam: Indonesian Chicken Cooked In Spiced Coconut Milk
Opor Ayam is an Indonesian chicken dish cooked in coconut milk with spices and herbs. It tastes delicately rich with fragrant herbs.
Servings: 6 portions
Equipment
- Pestle and mortar or
- Chopper or
- Food processor
- Cooking pan
- Wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 35 ounces chicken with bones approximately 1 baby chicken.
- 2 salam leaves/ Indonesian Bay leaves see the note.
- 1 lemongrass cut into one-inch long pieces.
- 13.53 fluid ounces coconut milk
- 17.6 fluid ounces water.
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil.
Spice paste:
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground Coriander.
- 1 teaspoon ground Cumin.
- 1 medium-sized Onion finely chopped.
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped.
- ½ inch ginger.
- ½ inch galangal.
- ½ inch fresh turmeric or ½ teaspoon turmeric powder optional.
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt or according to taste.
Instructions
- Using a food processor or a pestle and mortar, grind all the spice paste ingredients into a smooth mixture.
- Heat the oil in a cooking pan or a wok and stir-fry the spice paste.
- Add in Salam leaves and lemongrass. Continue cooking the spices until it releases a delicious aroma.
- Then put the chicken pieces in. Fry a little until all pieces are coated with spices, and the poultry looks opaque.
- Pour the coconut milk and the water into the chicken. Give it a good stir, then put the lid on. Cook it at low heat for about 30 - 45 minutes or until the chicken becomes tender and the oil slightly separates from the liquid.
- Serve your opor ayam garnished with fried shallots, and enjoy it with plain white rice or lontong.
Notes
- Salam leaves have a unique fragrance, and they are not the same family as the Indian bay leaves. So don’t try to substitute it with Indian bay leaf only. If Salam is not available to you, I suggest you use a combination of Indian bay leaf and curry leaf. For this recipe, 1 Indian bay leaf with 3 curry leaves is sufficient.
- If you prefer, you can use freshly-made coconut milk using freshly grated coconut or frozen grated coconut.
- You can use fresh turmeric root or dried turmeric powder. If you use the latter, you will only need about ½ teaspoon.
Nutrition
Serving: 250grams | Calories: 429kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 675mg | Potassium: 415mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 164IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 43mg | Iron: 4mg
Disclaimer
Nutritional info in this recipe is only estimate using online calculator. You should refer to it as a guide only. Please verify with your own data if you seek an accurate info.