Ajam smoor – Indian soy sauce chicken
Ajam smoor
Ajam smoor – Indian soy sauce chicken
As a child, ajam smoor, or Indian soy sauce chicken, was one of my favorite dishes. Tender, sweet chicken in a splash of delicious gravy. Absolute comfort food! It’s a simple dish, you know. Don’t be intimidated by the number of ingredients, these are seasonings that keep coming back to Indian cuisine.
I also add some baby potatoes to my braise, they become buttery soft in the sauce. I also marinate the chicken in a dash of soy sauce beforehand, so it caramelises nicely during baking.
Ajam smoor recipe
PREPARATION TIME: 15 min
INGREDIENTS
- 650 grams of chicken roasting sticks (chicken thigh with bone) Chicken thigh without bone is also possible. You can then take a little less.
- 7 tbsp sweet soy sauce
- 1 lime
- salt
- 3 shallots, chopped
- 6 garlic cloves, peeled
- 30 g ginger, sliced (peeled weight)
- 30 g laos, in slices. Possibly to be replaced by 1 tsp lao powder
- 1 tomato, in wedges
- 1 red chilli, cut into rings
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil + a little extra
- 1 stalk of lemongrass crushed
- 3 leaves of salam Available at the Asian supermarket and in the freezer compartment. Can be replaced with bay leaf if necessary
- 300 gr baby potatoes, washed
- 4 cloves
- fresh nutmeg
- 600 ml chicken stock
INSTRUCTIONS
- Marinate the chicken in 2 tablespoons of sweet soy sauce, the juice of half a lime and a pinch of salt.
- Meanwhile, make a bumbu (a spice paste) with the chopped shallots, garlic cloves, ginger, galangal, tomato, chili pepper and a pinch of salt. You can grind the bumbu in a large mortar, but it will also work with a hand blender and a high measuring cup. In the latter case, add a tablespoon of sunflower oil to make blending easier.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil in a stew pan. Fry the chicken roasting sticks nicely brown on all sides. Take out of the pan.
- Now fry the bumbu in the remaining fat. Stir-fry at least 5 minutes. Add the chicken again along with the lemongrass, salam leaves and baby potatoes. Add the cloves and a good pinch of freshly grated nutmeg and pour the stock and the remaining 5 tablespoons of soy sauce on top. Leave the chicken uncovered for about 35 minutes on low heat until cooked and tender. Taste and add extra soy sauce to taste if necessary.
- Delicious with white rice and simple green vegetables, such as green beans.
DISCLAIMER
The stated nutritional value is based on standard tables and therefore an estimated total. No rights can be derived from the information in the nutritional table.
