Opor ayam comes from Central Java, and it is the gentle member of a family not known for gentleness. Chicken is braised in coconut milk with a paste of shallots, garlic, candlenuts and coriander, scented with lemongrass, galangal, bay and lime leaves, until the sauce turns creamy and ivory pale. There is no chili in it at all, which makes it the Indonesian dish most often recommended to beginners, children and anyone who has just met a sambal and come off second best.

Across Java and far beyond it, opor ayam is the dish of Lebaran, the celebration of Eid al Fitr at the end of Ramadan, when families gather and the table fills with ketupat, rice cooked in woven palm leaf pouches, alongside chicken in coconut milk, spicy liver and chayote stewed in more coconut. The pot is often made the day before and tastes better for it. That makes it a calm choice for a race weekend: the paste takes ten minutes in a blender, the braise needs only an occasional stir, and it will sit happily on a low flame through a safety car or two.

The spice paste

Ingredients

• 6 small shallots
• 5 garlic cloves
• 5 candlenuts
• 1 inch (2.5 cm) fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) neutral vegetable oil

Method

1. Put the shallots, garlic, candlenuts, ginger, coriander, cumin, white pepper and 1 tablespoon of the oil in the blender. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water and blend for 1 to 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides, until smooth. If using a mortar and pestle, pound the nuts first, then the shallots and garlic, then the rest.
2. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the large pot over medium heat. Add the paste and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom, for 5 to 7 minutes. Lower the heat if it starts to catch.

The chicken braise

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lb (1.1 kg) bone in, skin on chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 2 lemongrass stalks
• 1 inch (2.5 cm) fresh galangal
• 4 makrut lime leaves
• 3 Indonesian bay leaves (daun salam)
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) water
• 1 can (13.5 oz / 400 ml) full fat coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon (12 g) palm sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 4 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons fried shallots

Method

1. While the paste fries, lay the lemongrass on the board and bash it along its length with the rolling pin until it splits and smells lemony, then tie each stalk in a loose knot. This releases the oils into the sauce.
2. Add the lemongrass, galangal, lime leaves, bay leaves and cinnamon to the fried paste and stir for 1 minute. Add the chicken pieces and turn them in the paste for 3 to 4 minutes, so every piece is coated.
3. Pour in the water, bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low, cover with the lid and simmer for 15 minutes, turning the pieces once.
4. Stir in the coconut milk, palm sugar and salt. Bring back to the barest simmer and cook uncovered for 25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes and spooning sauce over the chicken. If using eggs, add them for the last 10 minutes so they take on the flavor.
5. Taste the sauce and add more salt or a pinch more sugar until it is rich and savory with a soft sweetness. Fish out the lemongrass, galangal slices and cinnamon stick if you like; Indonesian cooks often leave them in. Halve the eggs, scatter the fried shallots over the top and serve.

Steamed jasmine rice

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (300 g) jasmine rice
• 2 cups (480 ml) water
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt

Method

1. Put the rice in the sieve and rinse under cold running water, rubbing the grains with your fingers, for about 1 minute.
2. Put the rice, water and salt in the medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir once, put the lid on, turn the heat to the lowest setting and cook for 15 minutes without lifting the lid.
3. Take the pan off the heat and leave it covered for 10 minutes, then fluff the rice gently with a fork.

More from Indonesia