Well, there are many options to explore chicken recipes, especially when it comes to the diverse Indonesian culinary menu. Among the easiest and most practical Indonesian recipes is the semur ayam recipe. So, what makes it interesting, and how do you cook it? Let’s find out!
What is Semur Ayam?
The term “semur ayam” or chicken stew may sound unfamiliar in Western countries. That’s because stews are a method of cooking meat by simmering it over low heat. The term originated from “smoor” in Dutch, which means boiled.
Over time, the cooking technique for stews has evolved with variations in the addition of spices, particularly nutmeg—a unique spice found only in Indonesia. This is why dishes that incorporate nutmeg tend to have a brown color.
In addition to nutmeg, other spices such as shallots, onions, sweet soy sauce, and cloves are also used. The rich color of semur ayam is always enticing and can increase anyone’s appetite. Not only for chicken, but this cooking technique can also be applied to beef and eggs.
A Step-by-step Making Semur Ayam Recipe
Cooking semur ayam is quite simple and easy to remember, but there are several ingredients that require preparation. Therefore, before making it, it’s important to gather and prepare all the necessary ingredients. Let’s take a closer look at these steps!
Preparation of Semur Ayam Recipe
Before you start cooking, it’s important to note that there are several ingredients that need to be prepared. Apart from selecting fresh chicken as the base ingredient, you need to be careful in choosing the spices to be used.
Different people have different approaches to cooking stews, such as frying the chicken before adding it to the stew or skipping that step altogether. You can choose the method that is most practical for you. Ensure that all the ingredients are ready and thoroughly washed.
Ingredients
- 1/5 kg of fresh chicken
- 3 shallots
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 segment of ginger
- 2 candlenuts
- Tomato
- Nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons of sugar
- 1 teaspoon of powdered chicken stock
- Pepper powder to taste
- 1 large chili
- Sweet soy sauce
- 2 bay leaves
- Lemongrass
- Galangal
- Vegetable oil
- Turmeric powder (optional)
How to Cook Semur Ayam
Making this semur ayam recipe is simple, although the preparation of the ingredients does take some time. The process of cooking the chicken will be divided into two steps: frying and stewing. This will ensure that the chicken cooks faster when it is added to the stew.
Step 1
1. Wash the chicken thoroughly and coat it evenly with turmeric powder to distribute the yellow color.
2. Season the chicken with salt and flavoring
3. Fry the seasoned chicken until it turns slightly brown, then remove it from the heat.
4. Step 1 is optional, you can choose to fry the chicken without adding any spices or even skip this step altogether. Frying the chicken helps to partially cook it, which shortens the overall cooking time when simmering it in the stew over low heat.
Step 2
1. Prepare the spice mixture by combining shallots, garlic, ginger, candlenuts, chilies, tomatoes, and nutmeg in a food processor. Process the spices until they form a smooth paste, adding a little water to facilitate the blending process.
2. Heat some oil in a hot frying pan and sauté the finely ground spice paste. Cook until fragrant, then add 2 bay leaves, galangal, and lemongrass. Stir the mixture until it turns brown and well blended. This slow stirring process prevents the spice paste from burning and ensures it cooks evenly.
3. Season the mixture with salt, pepper, sugar, chicken stock, and sweet soy sauce according to your taste preferences.
4. Add enough water to cover all the chicken pieces.
5. Add the half-cooked fried chicken into the boiling sauce and simmer until the sauce reduces and thickens, ensuring to keep the heat low to prevent it from burning too quickly.
6. Once the chicken is fully cooked and the gravy has thickened, turn off the stove. Your stewed chicken is now ready to be served, garnished with fried onions on top.
Alternative For Authentic Semur Ayam Recipe
At first glance, this stewed chicken recipe may resemble the sweet soy sauce chicken recipe, but it is distinctively different. The seasoning used in stews offers a unique blend of savory and sweet flavors. The addition of nutmeg adds an authentic touch that sets it apart from other culinary dishes.
Therefore, the spices play a crucial role in creating this special taste. Cooking this chicken stew is relatively simple, although maintaining its authenticity can be challenging due to the numerous required spices.
However, you have the option to reduce certain spices such as turmeric and galangal if desired. To preserve the authentic taste, many Indonesians prefer using a complete set of spices or opting for instant semur seasoning from Nyahtewel. This instant seasoning option also proves convenient for those who are traveling or residing abroad but still crave Indonesian cuisine.
Interested To Serve Indonesian Culinary for Your Daily Basis?
For Indonesian culinary lovers, the incorporation of spices as fundamental seasonings comes as no surprise. However, there are occasions when we lack the time to prepare an abundance of spices for delightful dishes on a daily basis.
That’s why there are many choices of instant seasonings from Nyahtewel to shorten cooking time. That way you can easily prepare the meal with a semur ayam recipe.
FAQ
- Which part of chicken meat is good for a chicken semur recipe?
The best parts of chicken to cook in a stew recipe are the breast, thighs, and wings. This part has thick enough meat so it will taste juicy when cooked in stews. - How long does it take to cook a semur ayam recipe?
Cooking one serving of chicken stew takes about 55 minutes. Depending on the thickness of the meat, and the preparation process of other ingredients. - How to make a simple chicken semur recipe?
To simplify cooking chicken stew, you can use instant seasonings that already have the distinctive spice flavor of chicken stew. - Can chicken be replaced with other meat or ingredients?
Apart from chicken, some people often replace it with eggs or beef. Chicken stew is also often cooked with boiled potatoes, but this is optional.