Nasi Ayam (Chicken Fried Rice)

Nasi Ayam is the Malaysian version of the famous "Hainanese Chicken Rice." The chicken for the Malay-style is roasted while the Chinese version is simmered in a chicken stock. Both are equally delicious and makes a hearty meal.

Ingredients for Chicken:

1 small fresh organic free-range chicken

3 shallots, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small piece ginger, minced

1 Tbsp. dark soy sauce

2 tsp. light soy sauce

1 Tbsp. tomato paste or sauce

1 tsp. chilli powder or chilli sauce

1 tsp. salt

1 cucumber for garnishing

Ingredients for Rice:

2 cups rice, washed and drained

1 small piece ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. butter

2 pandan leaves

2 Tbsp. fried shallots

pinch of salt

Ingredients for Chilli Sauce:

6 fresh red chillies

5 cloves garlic

1 piece ginger

¼ cup lime juice

1 tsp. sesame oil

salt and sugar to taste

Method:

1. Mix the ingredients for chicken in a bowl. Clean chicken and pat dry, prick with a fork to allow seasonings to penetrated. Marinate chicken with seasonings for 1/2 day or leave overnight in refrigerator.

2. Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Roast chicken for about an hour, remove and cut into serving pieces when cool.

3. Wash rice and put in rice cooker. Heat some butter in a pan and fry ginger and garlic till fragrant. Remove from heat and pour this mixture and pandan leaves to rice. Add sufficient water to cook according to the rice cooker.

4. Blend or pound finely all the ingredients for the chilli sauce. Season to taste with sugar and salt.

5. Serve rice with chicken, sliced cucumbers, chilli sauce and dark soy sauce. Garnish rice with some fried shallots.

Tips: Soak peeled shallots with a pinch of salt in water for about 5 minutes. Slice thinly and deep fry in hot oil till crisp and brown. Drain on paper towels.