Soto Ayam ( Indonesian Chicken Soup )

Soto ayam is a soup dish from Indonesia , unlike regular chicken soup where basic ingredients are only garlic and onion . This broth from this soup is made from many south east asian spices . Such as lemon grass , turmeric , galangal , etc . Super easy to make , which i was surprised . Soto ayam is sold everywhere back in Indonesia , every area has its own specialty soto ayam . Some areas using coconut milk in their soto recipe , where as my area , east java , we don’t use any coconut milk . This soto ayam is so refreshing , and very flavorful .

The condiments are a must , fried shallots , ground up nuts , candlenut chili paste , mungbean sprouts , and slice of lime or lemon to sprinkle . It is so good !!

 

Direction : 

1 whole young chicken , or 3 chicken breasts , bone in

Poach the chicken , and once it’s cooked , set aside , let it cool before shredding the chicken . 

Spices made into paste :

5 large shallots , or 10 small shallots

10 garlic cloves

8 candlenuts

about 2 inches of ginger

about 3-4 inches of turmeric

Throw all these spices into a food processor , until it becomes a very smooth paste , about 2 minutes . 

2 stalks of lemon grass , bruised

2 indonesian bay leaves

2 inches of galangal , bruised

Condiments :

– hard boiled eggs

– mungbean sprouts

– fried shallots

-candlenut chili sauce

-rice or rice cake , indonesian style

– rice vermicelli

– green onions or leeks

– parsley

-slices of lemon or lime juice

1. Poach the chicken until done , let it cool and shred the chicken , set aside . Do not throw away the broth from poaching the chicken .

2. In a different pot , heat up canola oil , then saute the spices paste , about few minutes , throw in the lemon grass and indonesian bay leaves , along with the galangal , keep sauteiing few more minutes on medium heat .

3. The spices should become very aromatic and pour about 2.5 liters of the broth that you used from poaching the chicken , or water is okay too . Stir , mix well , and bring to boil , then simmer . Add the shredded chicken in the pot , keep simmering for a good 45 minutes or an hour .

4. Soup is done , ready to be served . To serve , prepare a bowl , add the rice or indonesian rice cake , top with the chicken and the broth , then add the bean sprout , fried shallots , ground nuts , rice vermicelli , parsley and sprinkle with lime juice and candlenut chili paste .