Ayam Rica Rica

Today’s cooking was Ayam Rica Rica , originally from the city of Manado , in North Sulawesi island in Indonesia . From what i heard people love their food spicy over there , but then again i think most Indonesian love spicy food . This was not a hard dish to make , it’s a bit time consuming just like most indonesian food are . What i meant by time consuming is especially if you don’t have food processor , it will def. take your time to grind the spices into paste . Other than that it’s pretty good .

I also took the time to make a side dish earlier , which is Sambal Goreng Kentang , it is also another indonesian dish , made from potatoes , diced fried potatoes , and then saute in chili spiced paste with coconut milk and lemon grass . Love this dish .. it’s really yummy .

Direction for ayam rica rica : 

1 package of whole cut up chicken , or get a whole chicken and cut it up yourself

For the spice paste :

About 6-7 large shallots

About 5 garlic cloves

About 10-12 thai chilies

2 inches of ginger

1 roma tomatoes

Dump everything in the food processor and pulse until it’s all become smooth paste . Or you can use your mortar pestle to make a paste.  Heat up canola oil in a wok , then fry the spice paste for 4 minutes until it’s fragrant , then add the cut up chicken along with the salt , pepper and sugar , and smashed lemon grass about 2 stalks and smashed 2 inches of galangal . Cover and let it cook medium low for 30-45 minutes , then open the lid and cook out some of the juice and the spice paste becomes very thick and covering the chicken . You don’t need to stir often , but just watch it so it doesn’t burn on the bottom .Adjust your seasoning when it’s done cooking .

Direction for Sambal Goreng Kentang ( Fried diced potatoes in spiced chili paste and coconut milk ) 

About 6-7 medium yukon gold potatoes , diced

250 ml of coconut milk

3 garlic cloves

2 large shallots

1 inch of ginger

smashed 1 inch galangal

smashed 1 lemon grass

1. Deep fry the diced potatoes until it’s light brown on the outside .Set aside

2. In a skillet , heat up canola oil , then stir fry the paste , for few minutes . Add lemon grass and galangal , and coconut milk . Bring to slightly boil , simmer for few minutes until the coconut milk is slightly reduced . Then add the potatoes and mix well .