How to make spicy Chicken Rendang.

Today we’re making Chicken Rendang – one of my all time favourite Malay dishes. Rendang is a dry curry stew that you can find in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Chicken or Beef

The beef version is more popular, but I personally prefer chicken. Less guesswork with beef cuts and lesser time to cook, which means less time in the kitchen! I will make a beef version soon, but this recipe works for beef as well. Be sure to adjust water and time for the beef to stew and get fork-tender.

Spicy

This is a spicy version that takes a bit more ingredients, time and love, but worth it. I’ve also replaced a couple of ingredients to easier found items already in your pantry. For a non-spicy version, omit the fresh chillies and dried chillies. For an EXTRA spicy version (hello!) throw in a couple of Thai Bird’s Eye Chillies in the blend.

Kerisik

Kerisik or coconut butter is what gives rendang that signature nutty taste and gritty texture, but it’s not that easy to find, even in our local supermarket. It’s grated fresh coconuts, toasted over heat and pounded to release creaminess. You can try to make it with dessicated coconut flakes. I personally love rendang without kerisik so… I would just skip it altogether 🙂

Cheat Ingredient – Garam Masala

The ‘cheat’ ingredient here is Garam Masala. The original recipe requires a spice blend of coriander seeds, fennel and cumin but even I don’t have these in my pantry most times. Store bought usually includes those spices, and a pop of other spices never hurts ;P.

Ingredients:

500g Chicken
200ml Coconut Cream/Milk
40g Kerisik
200ml Water
3 tsps Salt or to taste
3 tsps Sugar or to taste
Rendang Spice Base:
- 10g (about 10 stalks) Dried Chillies, soaked in boiling water
- 5-6 Fresh Chillies
- 4-5 Shallots or 1 Onion
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 3 Lemongrass Stalks
- 1 tbsp or 1/2 inch Ginger
- 1 tbsp or 1/2 inch Galangal
- 1 tsp or 10g Turmeric Powder
- 2 tsps or 20g Garam Masala

Directions:

Blend together spice base paste finely.
Add oil to pan. Once hot, lower heat and add in rendang base paste.
Sauté the spice base just until it is fragrant and dryer, about 5 minutes.
Add in chicken and stir into paste.
Add coconut cream, or coconut milk. Stir through and crank up the heat, and let it come to a boil.
Once bubbly, lower the heat, and let it simmer for 30 minutes.
Halfway through, add water if gravy has reduced before chicken is cooked.
At the 30 minute mark, add in the kerisik.
Season with salt and sugar.