Tender chicken gently simmered in creamy coconut milk with coriander, candlenuts, galangal and lemongrass. This Javanese opor ayam is fragrant and full of spice, but not hot; serve it with rice and, if you like, acar for a fresh contrast.
Opor ayam is a Javanese chicken dish in which spices and coconut milk come together to make a mild, fragrant sauce. Its flavour is different from rendang: opor isn’t meant to be spicy or cooked until dry. The chicken cooks gently in a liquid sauce that stays creamy, with coriander, garlic, shallot and aromatic roots taking centre stage. Recipes and preferences vary from household to household and from region to region; this is a practical version made with common ingredients, not a claim to one definitive way of making it.
Candlenuts, also known as kemiri nuts, give the spice paste body and help make the sauce feel richer. Toast them briefly in a dry pan until lightly coloured and fragrant, but don’t let them darken. Then grind them finely with the shallot, garlic and spices. Use ground coriander for convenience, or grind whole coriander seeds just before cooking. Fresh galangal has a fresh, resinous aroma; if you can’t find it, frozen galangal works well too. Ginger isn’t an exact substitute, but a smaller amount can add a similar warmth.
Gently frying the spice paste is important: it softens the raw onion and garlic flavours and releases the spices into the oil. Then add the chicken and let it cook gently in the coconut milk and water. Keep the liquid just below a simmer; boiling it hard can cause the sauce to split and makes it harder to get evenly tender chicken. Bone-in chicken thighs or drumsticks stay juicy as they cook. If you use chicken breast, add it later and cook it for less time, as lean meat dries out more quickly.
Bruising the lemongrass before adding it to the pan helps release its aroma; remove the stalk and any salam leaves from the sauce before serving. Salam leaves are available from Asian grocery stores and have their own distinct aroma. A bay leaf is a practical, but not identical, substitute. Use canned coconut milk without added sugar if possible. If the sauce is too thin at the end, simmer it gently without a lid for a few minutes; stir regularly so it doesn’t catch on the bottom.
Serve the opor with steamed white rice, which soaks up the mild sauce nicely. Acar, a fresh pickled vegetable, goes well with it because the acidity and crunch balance the creamy richness. You can also serve cucumber or finely chopped raw vegetables on the side, but keep the chicken and sauce at the centre of the meal. Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container within two hours and use them within two days. Reheat them over low heat, stirring, and add a splash of water if the sauce has thickened in the fridge; heat the chicken all the way through.
Toast the candlenuts in a dry frying pan over medium heat for 2–3 minutes, until lightly coloured and fragrant. Leave to cool.
Grind the candlenuts with the shallot, garlic, coriander, turmeric and galangal in a food processor or mortar and pestle to make the spice paste as fine as possible. Add a small splash of water if needed.
Heat the oil in a large heavy-based pan over medium heat. Fry the spice paste for 5–7 minutes, stirring regularly. Lower the heat if the paste starts to stick to the bottom.
Add the chicken and turn the pieces so they’re coated in the spice paste. Add the lemongrass, salam leaves, coconut milk, 300 ml water and salt.
Bring it gently to just below a simmer. Turn the heat to low, partially cover the pan with a lid and let the chicken cook gently for 45–55 minutes. Turn the pieces halfway through. The chicken is ready when it’s tender and no longer pink by the bone.
Meanwhile, rinse the rice until the water runs mostly clear. Put the rice and 450 ml water in a pan and bring to the boil. Turn the heat to low, cover and cook for 12 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to stand, covered, for another 10 minutes.
Taste the sauce and add more salt if needed. Remove the lemongrass and salam leaves from the pan. Serve the chicken and coconut sauce with the rice.
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