This recipe comes from the Nyonya community, an ethnic group defined by their genealogical descent from the first waves of Southern Chinese settlers to maritime Southeast Asia. The communities are multi-ethnic and the communities incorporate Indian, Chinese and Malay; which explains the use of lemongrass and soy sauce in this curry. This is an authentic mildly spiced, rich and savoury dish originally given to my husband by an university friend.
Prep time 20 minutes/Cook time 50 minutes/4
Ingredients:
For the Meat Curry Powder:
10 whole cloves
4 cardamom pods split
6 whole black peppercorns
4 white peppercorns or 1⁄2 teaspoon of white pepper
1 cinnamon stick
1 whole star anise
1 dried bay leaf
3 whole dried red chillies
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
For the Chicken Curry:
500g (1 lb) chicken meat cut into bite-sized pieces
3 ½ tbsp Malay meat curry powder
1 tbsp light soy sauce
5 dried chillies
3 candlenuts (or macadamia nuts)
3 garlic cloves
3 shallots, peeled and coarsely chopped
3cm (1in) piece of ginger, peeled and grated
3 tbsp oil
300ml (1 ¼ cups) water
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 stalk lemongrass, outer layer removed and core bruised
1 star anise
1 yellow onion, peeled and finely chopped
5 curry leaves
300ml (1 ¼ cups) coconut milk
Salt, to taste
Palm sugar, to taste
Method:
Begin with the curry powder: Lightly toast whole cloves, cardamom, black and white peppercorns in a dry pan over medium heat until fragrant. Turn onto a plate and set aside. Dry fry the cinnamon stick, star anise, bay leaf, and chillies until fragrant. Remove from heat and add to other reserved spices. Fry coriander seeds until fragrant and add to other spices. Add remaining ingredients and cook until fragrant. Blend all spices in blender or grind in mortar and pestle. Turn into a jar, seal and store until needed.
For the curry. Combine the chicken meat with the curry powder and soy sauce in a bowl. Massage the marinade into the meat, then set aside in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
Soak dried chillies in warm water until soft (if desired remove the seeds and membranes to reduce the spiciness; I don’t bother). Blend together the candlenuts, garlic, shallots, ginger and dried chillies to a paste with the curry powder).
Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the chilli paste and cook until fragrant (about 2 minutes). At this point stir in the chicken meat and any leftover marinade, stirring well to combine. Cook until the dish is slightly dry then add water and cook over high heat.
At this point add the potatoes, onions, lemongrass and curry leaves. Once it boils, lower the heat and allow to simmer for 30 to 40 minutes.
Add coconut milk and cook at high heat again. Once it boils, lower the heat. Season to taste with salt and sugar.
Serve with rotis or rice.
