Food cravings - Ayam Masak Merah (Red Cooked Chicken)

1. Pre cooked chicken that had been marinated in tumeric and salt

2. Simmering sauce so the sauce thickens..


3. Adding in the pre-cooked chicken

4. Adding in additional onions for the crunchy feel.

So I have been having cravings for Malaysian food recently and seeing that you cant get true blue Malaysian food unless one cooks it yourself, I decided to bite the bullet and try my own version of ayam masak merah. Admittingly, my original choice was to make ayam padprik but I didnt have the right ingredients in the pantry so opted for Plan B instead.

Ok - so here was what was in ...

INGREDIENTS :

Chicken - I used chicken breast cut into pieces but chicken thigh would do too (skinless)
2 tbsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp salt
Cooking oil - I used olive oil
1 cup red onions chopped
2 tbsp ginger grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 can tomato puree
½-1 cup or to taste chili paste - I had some packet sambal sauce but have since got sambal olek
3 tbsp chili sauce (or as to taste)
1 cup tomato ketchup - I used Heinz
2 tbsp dark sweet soy sauce - Kicap pekat
1 large onion, cut into rings
½ tbsp sugar
salt to taste
2 cups water
3-4 kaffir lime leaves

How to cook:

Coat chicken pieces with turmeric powder and salt - keep aside for 1/2 hr
Heat wok, add oil to fry chicken. Fry chicken in batches till light golden brown, drain and set.
Pour off all but 4 tbsp of oil, add red onions, ginger, garlic, stir-fry a few seconds, add chili paste and stir-fry 1-2 mins
Add chili sauce, tomato puree, tomato ketchup, dark sweet soy sauce, sugar and salt to taste. Then stir-fry 1 min
Add kaffir lime leaves, 2 cups water, bring to a rapid boil, immediately reduce heat to med, simmer uncovered 10 mins
Add chicken, stir well to coat evenly with sauce
Bring to a boil again, then reduce heat to low, cover, simmer slowly for about 25-35 mins
Add onion rings, simmer 3-5 mins, onions rings should have a slight crunch
Serve with rice

Walla!!