This recipe doesn’t demand anything particularly exotic to produce an authentically Malaysian flavor. But instead of relying on canned curry paste as so many similar dishes do, this one offers a good deal more fragrance and sweetness by starting with fresh spices. If you’ve got access to a good market and would like to try a more unusual chicken curry from Southeast Asia, try the Red-Cooked Chicken (preceding recipe) or the Braised Duck or Chicken with Fresh Curry Paste on page 328, which incorporates Thai ingredients like dried shrimp or fish sauce. This curry is great with white rice but even better with the Malaysian coconut rice, Nasi Lemak, on page 515. You can make this curry a day in advance—keep it covered in the refrigerator overnight and warm it gently over low heat before serving.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Combine the ginger, shallots, and garlic in a food processor or blender and puree to a coarse paste. Set aside.
Step 2
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When it shimmers, season the chicken with salt, add it, skin side down, and brown well, rotating and turning the pieces as necessary, 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 3
When the chicken has browned, transfer it to a plate and add the shallot-ginger-garlic paste to the pan. Cook, stirring, until lightly colored and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Add the cinnamon stick, star anise, cloves, and curry powder and cook for a minute more, then return the chicken to the skillet and season well with salt.
Step 4
Add the coconut milk to the pan, scraping with a wooden spoon to incorporate any solids into the sauce. Lower the heat so the coconut milk is simmering gently and cook, partially covered, for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through (you may want to remove the breast meat from the sauce after 20 minutes and warm it through just before serving—this will keep it from overcooking). Remove the whole spices from the pan and serve warm with Nasi Lemak or plain jasmine rice.
