Ayam Panggang Klaten [ Klaten BBQ Chicken ]

This is another recipe for Indonesian bbq chicken. There are tons of recipes for bbq chicken out there, but so far I always prefer the one that you have to cook the chicken before you bbq it simply because I suck at bbq-ing things. I tend to burn the outside yet the inside is still raw, and raw chicken is a big no no. I know, I have to work on my bbq skill.

Today I tried the recipe for Ayam Panggang Klaten. Its literally means chicken bbq from Klaten region. Klaten is a regency in Central Java, Indonesia. This recipe is one of the most famous bbq chicken in Java. The chicken is tender, juicy and full of flavor. The key of the tenderness lays on the piece of chicken you use. The real Ayam Panggang Klaten uses a chicken that has never laid egg. I call it a virgin chicken. Why would a chicken that has never laid egg has a tenderer meat? Well, I have few theories of my own, but I am afraid you will look at me weird if I tell you. The same weird look I get from my local butcher when I asked him for a virgin chicken. The look that says: "mam, are you correct in your mind?  Do you need a chicken for cooking or commit some kind of witchery?".

Anyway, lets move on to the recipe before I blabber too much. Lets keep this blog as a recipe blog instead of a mad-lass blabber blog.

Ingredients:

8 medium size chicken legs 

2 Salam leaves (Indonesian Bay leaf)

4 Kaffir lime leaves (take out the middle bone)

1 Lemon grass (bruised)

2 cm Galangal

1 Tbsp chicken broth powder or salt

1 Tbsp Indonesian palm sugar (gula jawa/aren)

1 Tsp Concentrated tamarind juice

1 Tbsp Ketjap Manis

600 ml coconut milk

2 Tbsp oil for sauté

Paste ingredients:

6 Shallots

4 Garlic

1 Tsp coriander 

1/4 Tsp caraway

1/2 Tsp black pepper 

1 Tsp Kencur powder (Greater galangal powder)

5 candlenuts

1 cm ginger

1 Tsp curcuma powder

Cooking steps:

1. Paste shallots, garlic, coriander seed, caraway seed, black pepper, Kencur powder, candlenuts, ginger and curcuma powder. 

2. Sauté the pasted ingredients with 2 tbsp of oil on medium heat. Add daun salam, Kaffir lime leaves, bruised lemongrass and galangal. Stir from time to time until it fragrant. 

3. Add chicken, chicken broth powder, palm sugar, tamarind juice and Ketjap manis. Continue cooking until chicken turns into pale color. 

4. Add coconut milk and stir thoroughly. Continue cooking until the chicken is cooked and the sauce broth is reduced (a bit thicken). Meanwhile, preheat your bbq.

5. Place the chicken on the bbq grill(medium heat) and baste with the broth from time to time. Becareful tho, don't burn your self. As the chicken has already been cooked, you only have to char it a bit to give it the fine lines of bbq burn on each side. It shouldn't take too long. 

6. Serve warm with rice, fresh salad and your favorite Sambal (Chili sauce condiment).

Happy Cooking!!!