Soto Ayam (Indonesian Chicken Soup)

Posted August 15, 2020 by K3B

Soto ayam is an Indonesian version of chicken soup, the broth brightened by fresh turmeric, lemongrass & spices. It is served with rice vermicelli, a boiled egg, fried shallots, celery leaves and herbs and is hearty enough for a meal..

SOTO AYAM

Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs skin removed
4 cups of water or chicken stocks
1 stalk lemongrass cut into 3 pieces
3 kaffir lime leaves
1 tsp salt
vegetable oil to shallow fry

The spice paste:
6 shallots
4 cloves garlic chopped
1 inch fresh ginger chopped
3 candlenuts or macadamia nuts as replacement
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup coconut milk
3 tbsp vegetable oil

2 cups of cooked rice vermicelli
4 large cooked eggs, cut in quarters
chopped asian celery or cilantro to garnish
fried shallots to garnish
sambal oelek to serve
lime wedges to serve

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine the stock, kaffir lime leaf, lemongrass and salt in a pot large enough to hold all the ingredients. Bring to a simmer.
Add the chicken and simmer until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 170F. This should take 15-20 minutes. Don’t boil. Simmer. Little bubbles.

While the chicken simmers make the spice paste.
Heat a bit of oil in a small skillet. Add the garlic, shallot and ginger and fry until the shallots soften and start to colour up.
Transfer the garlic, shallot and ginger to a blender. Add the remaining ingredients and puree. This is your spice paste.

Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a pot over medium heat for about 1 minutes, add the paste and cook, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium low and cook for another two minutes or so. The oil should start to separate at the edges. Stir the cooked paste into the broth and stir until the chicken is fully cooked.

Remove the chicken from the broth, set aside and let it cool. You can also turn off the heat under the broth for now.

Fry the chicken in a large a wok or pan. Fry on one side for about 2-3 minutes. Flip the chicken and cook another 2-3 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside to cool enough to handle. When it’s cool enough pull the chicken off the bone and shred it.

HOW TO SERVE SOTO AYAM:
place 1/4 of the rice noodles in each of 4 bowls. Divide the Shredded chicken and place it on the vermicelli. Top with fried shallots and cilantro. Pour 2 cups of broth into each bowl. Add one egg and a slice of lime per bowl. Serve. And add sambal oelek to taste. Enjoy.

Serve 4 people

Main Dishes Noodles Soup Chicken Chicken Soup Main Dish Main Dishes Noodles Soup