Ayam Goreng - Indonesian Fried Chicken

On street corners all over Java, vendors set up stalls where chicken pieces are first boiled until tender in a spiced broth and then braised until golden in oil. This is the principle behind Ayam Goreng, and it is precisely the pre-cooking that makes the meat juicy right down to the bone, while the skin becomes crispy. Tamarind adds a tart kick, turmeric colors the meat a warm yellow, and the scent of garlic and ginger hangs in the kitchen already during marination. A splash of sweet ketjap manis rounds off the marinade with the characteristic Indonesian sweetness. Serve it with steaming jasmine rice and a spicy sambal or sweet chili, and you have a dish that tastes like a holiday.

• Cuisine: Indonesian
• Time: 60 minutes plus marinating
• Servings: 4 people
• Difficulty: Medium

Instructions

1. Finely grate ginger and garlic, then mix with dark soy, ketjap manis, tamarind, turmeric, coriander, salt, and palm sugar to form a thick marinade.
2. Thoroughly coat the chicken pieces in the marinade until fully covered, then let them marinate for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator – preferably overnight.
3. Place the chicken in a pot with bay leaves and a little water, then simmer gently for about 15 minutes until the meat is tender.
4. Remove the chicken pieces and pat them dry with paper towels – wet chicken will splatter when it meets hot oil.
5. Heat the oil to 170 degrees Celsius. Test with a wooden spoon: if it bubbles vigorously around the handle, the oil is ready.
6. Fry the chicken in batches for a couple of minutes until deeply golden and crispy. Do not overcrowd the pot, or the temperature will drop.
7. Let the pieces drain on absorbent paper to keep the skin crispy.
8. Sprinkle crispy fried shallots over, and serve with jasmine rice, cucumber, and a bowl of sweet chili or sambal.

Tips

• The brown crumbs left in the oil from the marinade can be fried until crispy and sprinkled over as an extra flavor boost.
• Substitute chicken with large pieces of firm tofu, pressed dry first – this will give you a vegetarian version with the same crispy skin.
• Leftovers keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator and become crispy again when reheated in a hot oven at 200 degrees Celsius.
• Keep an eye on the oil temperature: too low, and the chicken will be greasy; too high, and the skin will burn before the meat is hot.