AYAM BUAH KELUAK
Ayam Buah Keluak or just Buah Keluak , is one of the signature dishes of the Peranakan community, mainly because of the use of buah keluak , considered a delicacy, this dish is basically chicken and buah keluak in a thick spicy gravy , a really special experience .
Buah keluak is the nut of the kepayang tree which is found in the wilderness of Indonesia and certain parts of Malaysia. Dark brown or black in colour, it is about the size of a golf ball and has faint striations on its shell, much like a brazil nut. When sold at the markets, buah keluak has a dusty grey appearance because the nuts have been washed, boiled and buried in the earth for at least 40 days to remove the poisonous properties of its raw seeds.
Ground spices and lemon grass are fried with oil until a wonderful fragrance emerges. The chicken is added and fried until it is half cooked. Next to go into the mixture is the buah keluak and tamarind juice. The combination is then allowed to simmer until the gravy becomes thick and the chicken meat is tender. At certain places, pork ribs are added while at others, they use pork instead of chicken.
This dish is a staple Peranakan (Straits-Chinese) favourite that is truly memorable for its acquired yet robust flavour and taste. Strong traditions have resulted in this golden recipe being passed down from generation to generation, making it a truly authentic Peranakan dish. Made with chicken pieces (and sometimes pork) combined with keluak nuts (an atypical type of nut which comes with a tough shell exterior, but oozes a piquant liquid inside), it produces an appealing yet unique flavor that must be tasted to be believed.
The dish isn’t a simple one to make; the Rempah (pounded spices) alone is made of seven ingredients and takes half a day to fry. Then, you have to scrub every nut, soak it in water for two days, chop off one end of the nut and dig out the black flesh inside. Then you have to pound or blend it with some spices. You have to neaten the nut’s opening with a cutter so that it’s presentable before you put the flesh back in (phew, what hard labour!).
Finally, you put the stuffed nuts, chicken and rempah on a simmer for another half a day until the sauce thickens.
Because of the hard work and the keluak nuts this dish is not commonly found at typical eateries.
The dish is best eaten with a bowl of steamed rice, chincalok egg (fermented shrimp omelette) and sambal kangkong (water spinach in sambal sauce); a truly heady combination if ever there was one.
thanks to all the sources : Wikipedia ; SingaporeLifestyle ; YourSingapore ; MakanTime ; and all the other sites and blogs
Buah keluak is the nut of the kepayang tree which is found in the wilderness of Indonesia and certain parts of Malaysia. Dark brown or black in colour, it is about the size of a golf ball and has faint striations on its shell, much like a brazil nut. When sold at the markets, buah keluak has a dusty grey appearance because the nuts have been washed, boiled and buried in the earth for at least 40 days to remove the poisonous properties of its raw seeds.
Ground spices and lemon grass are fried with oil until a wonderful fragrance emerges. The chicken is added and fried until it is half cooked. Next to go into the mixture is the buah keluak and tamarind juice. The combination is then allowed to simmer until the gravy becomes thick and the chicken meat is tender. At certain places, pork ribs are added while at others, they use pork instead of chicken.
This dish is a staple Peranakan (Straits-Chinese) favourite that is truly memorable for its acquired yet robust flavour and taste. Strong traditions have resulted in this golden recipe being passed down from generation to generation, making it a truly authentic Peranakan dish. Made with chicken pieces (and sometimes pork) combined with keluak nuts (an atypical type of nut which comes with a tough shell exterior, but oozes a piquant liquid inside), it produces an appealing yet unique flavor that must be tasted to be believed.
The dish isn’t a simple one to make; the Rempah (pounded spices) alone is made of seven ingredients and takes half a day to fry. Then, you have to scrub every nut, soak it in water for two days, chop off one end of the nut and dig out the black flesh inside. Then you have to pound or blend it with some spices. You have to neaten the nut’s opening with a cutter so that it’s presentable before you put the flesh back in (phew, what hard labour!).
Finally, you put the stuffed nuts, chicken and rempah on a simmer for another half a day until the sauce thickens.
Because of the hard work and the keluak nuts this dish is not commonly found at typical eateries.
The dish is best eaten with a bowl of steamed rice, chincalok egg (fermented shrimp omelette) and sambal kangkong (water spinach in sambal sauce); a truly heady combination if ever there was one.
thanks to all the sources : Wikipedia ; SingaporeLifestyle ; YourSingapore ; MakanTime ; and all the other sites and blogs