Malaysian chicken rice (Nasi ayam)

Chicken rice is a local favourite for Malaysians. As with many classic dishes, just about every household has its own unique recipe. The chicken must be cooked to perfection so it's tender and juicy, but it's just as important to get the rice right – perfectly fluffy and scented with the umami flavours of the stock.

Nasi ayam (Chicken rice) Credit: Georgia Gold

• serves

  4

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  1:15 hour

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• vinegared chilli sauce, to serve (recipe below)
• 1 long cucumber, sliced

Marinated chicken

• 5 cm piece ginger
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 large red onions, roughly chopped
• 1 x 1.5 kg chicken
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp kecap manis
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• freshly ground black pepper

Broth

• 1 litre (4 cups) poaching liquid
• 1 sup bunjut (soup spices; see Note)
• 1 red shallot, finely sliced
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• chopped coriander leaves, to garnish

Scented rice

• 400 g (2 cups) long-grain rice, washed
• 500 ml (2 cups) poaching liquid (from the chicken)
• 1 tbsp minced ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 pandan leaf, knotted and torn

Soy dipping sauce

• 375 ml (1½ cups) poaching liquid (from the chicken)
• 3 tbsp kecap manis, or to taste

Sambal cili cuka (Vinegared chilli sauce)

Makes about 500 ml (2 cups)

• 10 long red chillies, roughly chopped
• 125 ml (½ cup) Chicken stock
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 80 ml (⅓ cup) apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp salt

Marinating time: 50 minutes

Instructions

1. To prepare the marinated chicken, place the ginger, garlic and onion in a blender or food processor and blend to a smooth paste. Massage the paste into the chicken and set aside to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Pour 2 litres (8 cups) water into a stockpot and bring to the boil. Add the chicken, reduce the heat to low and gently poach until the chicken is half-cooked, about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken and place on a wire rack to drain and cool slightly. Cut the chicken into four to eight pieces. Strain the poaching liquid, discarding the solids, and set aside.
3. Combine the sauces, honey, sesame oil and pepper in a bowl. Add the chicken pieces and turn to coat in the marinade, then set aside for 20 minutes.
4. To make the broth, combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Check the seasoning and adjust if necessary. Garnish with chopped coriander and set aside.
5. For the scented rice, place all the ingredients in a rice cooker and cook according to the manufacturer's instructions.
6. Meanwhile, to make the soy dipping sauce, combine the poaching broth, kecap manis and reserved marinade in a small saucepan and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
7. To make the vinegared chili sauce, place all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend to a smooth paste. Taste and adjust according to your preference. The spiciness, sweetness and acidity should be balanced. This will keen in an airtight container or a glass jar and store in the fridge for up to 1 week.
8. Shortly before you're ready to eat, heat the oil for deep-frying in a wok or deep frying pan over medium heat until hot and a little smoky. Remove the chicken pieces from the bowl, allowing any excess marinade to drip off. (Reserve the marinade for the dipping sauce.) Deep-fry the chicken in batches for 5–7 minutes until nicely golden and cooked through. Remove and drain on paper towel.
9. To serve, divide the rice among plates, along with little bowls of dipping sauce and vinegared chilli sauce. Add the chicken and arrange the sliced cucumber to the side of the rice. Serve with the broth.

Notes

• Sup bunjut is a spice mix for soups made with cinnamon, star anise, cloves, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, cardamom and mustard seeds, wrapped in a muslin bag. You can buy it from Asian grocery stores specialising in Southeast Asian ingredients.

• If you don't have any chicken stock, just replace it with water or any other stock you have to hand.

Penang Local by Aim Aris and Ahmad Salim, published by Smith Street Books (RRP $39.99). Photography by Georgia Gold. 

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.