Ayam Masak Merah translates to Cooked Red Chicken is one of my most favorite Malay dishes. This dish is common during big celebrations like Hari Raya and Weddings. The flavor profile is super delicious with the slight heat from the chillis, the sweetness of the brown sugar, the slight acidity and savory profile of the tomato puree and the delicious fat from the fried chicken. I garnish the finished dish with slices of fresh torch ginger flower for added texture and fragrance.
INGREDIENTS
1 Kampung Chicken
1 Stick Cinnamon
5 Cloves
2 Star Anise
5 Cardamom
1 Lemongrass
2 Tbs Maggi Chilli Sauce
400gm Pure Tomato Puree
1 Tbs Brown Sugar
REMPAH (SPICE PASTE)
25gm Dried Red Chilli
2 Red Onions (Baseball Size) 25gm Ginger 5 Cloves of Garlic
SEASONING
Turmeric Powder
Brown Sugar
Salt
GARNISH
Torch Ginger Flower
INSTRUCTIONS
Marinate the chicken
Cut up chicken into pieces (roughly 10-12 pieces), I usually cut it into 2 x Wings, 2 x Drums, 2 x Thighs, 4-6 x Breasts.
Marinate the Chicken in Turmeric Powder and Salt, Set aside for at least 30mins, best if you can marinate it overnight. (Try to use food gloves as the turmeric can stain your fingers)
Preparing the Rempah (Spice Paste)
Wash and Soak the Dried chillis to clean and rehydrate it.
Blend the dried chilli, Red onions, Ginger and garlic into a Rempah.
Cooking Ayam Masak Merah
Fry the marinated chicken in oil till it's half cooked. The chicken should have a nice yellowish golden brown color. Set all the fried chicken aside.
Leaving some of the chicken oil in the cookware you're cooking with (I used a chinese wok), Fry the Cinnamon, cloves, star anise, cardamom and lemongrass (i used a knife to pound the lemongrass to bruise it).
Fry the spices and aromatics till you can smell the aroma of it.
Add the Rempah in to deglaze the cookware and continue to fry the paste, spices and aromatics till the oil splits from the paste. This process is also known as Pecah Minyak, when the rempah breaks down, moisture evaporates and oil separates.
Add in the Tomato Puree and continue to fry.
Add in the Maggi Chilli Sauce and continue to fry before adding Brown Sugar and Salt to season and adjust to your liking. It should be sweet, salty and savory.
Add in the fried chicken pieces, mix the chicken around and continue to fry for a bit, you may also add some hot water if you need to.
Cover the cookware with a lid and let it simmer on low heat for around 15mins till chicken is fully cooked and the sauce is reduced. To test if chicken is cooked, either use a meat thermometer or just follow the old school way, poke a chopstick into the meat to check resistance and see if blood flows out.
Plate the dish and garnish it with thin strips of fresh *torch ginger flower for additional texture and fragrance. Ayam Masak Merah goes extremely well with rice.
*Torch Ginger Flower
Young Torch Ginger flowers have a snappy crispy texture. The flavor profile is fragrant, fresh, slightly sour and citrusy. You can find it in your local wet markets.
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