SMASHED CHICKEN LEG, SAMBAL & COCONUT RICE

Hey folks,

Welcome back to How I Cook+. This week, a take on the Indonesian classic ayam geprek. This recipe has been lodged in a corner of my brain for years following a lovely afternoon spent in the Mob test kitchen, a handful of years ago now, with Chef Nadir. He taught me to make the OG version of ayam geprek, a crispy breaded fried chicken, smashed and served with sambal. Fiery, moreish and completely delicious, it flew into the top rankings of recipes I learnt in that kitchen from our brilliant guests.

I often open that little black book for inspiration. What a joy it was to have talented, interesting cooks come through the doors to film with us, baked Spanish rice, Iraqi dolma, insane, decadent butter chicken or smashed-to-pieces-spicy-as-f**k fried chicken. Sharing recipes is brilliant. So, for this week’s recipe I’m presenting a slightly adapted version of geprek, one that uses a few of my store cupboard staples in place of some slightly more authentic, but elusive, ingredients. It’s not super authentic, but it is delicious.

Cheers,

B x

AYAM GEPREK

Ayam Geprek is scientifically approved as delicious. Why? Well, because it simultaneously nails all of the best parts of “comfort food” at once. See: crispy, spicy, acidic, rich, fresh and warm. It’s a dish of contrasts, contrasts are what make food exciting and moreish, it’s often these contrasts that folks crave wihtout really realising it. Why do they serve a giant pickle with a grotesquely large pastrami sandwich at Katz’ on instagra- I mean in New York? You guessed it. Contrast.

It’s also another glorious iteration of (friend of the newsletter) chicken and rice! This one isn’t macro-maxxing, but eating for a six pack is for another life, not this one. I think where this chicken-rice has the edge over most is the contrasts in texture. The chicken is usually fried until golden and crunchy on the outside while staying incredibly juicy. It then is smashed, to create even more texture before being slathered in a fresh sambal, which makes the crispy coating soak up all the spicy, garlicky flavor. You get crunch, soft meat, slipper spicy sambal and moist, supple rice underneath. Pair that with a cool, crisp cucumber and trust me folks, you’re lizard-brain will be firing.

Ayam geprek also, crucially, is fun to eat. It’s messy, spicy, and addictive. Even though the ingredients are basic, the technique and harmony of flavour creates something really hard to stop eating.

CONFIT CHICKEN

My first sidestep, and it’s a big one, is to not actually fry the chicken. I chose to confit the chicken as it yields a similarly crispy exterior (admittedly, without the breading) whilst keeping the interior soft and juicy. I love it as a technique and it’s one that home cooks don’t use enough. I’ve covered confit in more depth here, go and give it a read if you’re interested in the nuts and bolts.

The main gripe with confit is “Ben, what do I do with all of this oil??”. The cooking oil is incredibly delicious, do not throw it out. Strain and reserve in the fridge for a week to make fried rice, stir fried vegetables or to crisp up future chicken recipes. Delightful.

SALTING + AROMATICS

Key steps in the confit process are pre-seasoning and adding aroma to your confit. This is as simple as getting ahead on salting your ingredients. If you’re having this for your dinner, get up in the morning and spend literally 5 minutes preparing the confit ingredients, salt them generously, cover and stick ‘em in the fridge. This tiny bit of prep pays of in spades, trust me. The aromatics can be played with as you see fit, I love this combination of lemongrass, chillies etc but a lime leaf or some star anise wouldn’t be unwelcome either. Think of your confit oil as a blank canvas, anything you lob in will subtly influence what comes out the other side.

THE COOK

This is a two-parter. The first, a low, slow cook to tenderise and cook the chicken gently, then a hot blast out of the pot to crisp the skin. Two key temperatures, both detailed below in the recipe. Confit is really easy, don’t stress. The best way to approach the cook is to find a vessel just big enough that will house your chicken and require a relatively small amount of oil to cover. I use this 6th pan with a lid, but any small, ovenproof container will do! A small saucepan, metal container or even ceramic will do. Once the first cook is done, gently fish the chicken out (it’ll be tender, be careful!) and set onto a tray lined with parchment. I find foil is way too sticky here and you’ll be prising the chicken off with a spatula, leaving behind your crispy skin.

SAMBAL

The sambal is what really makes ayam geprek special. It’s spicy, savory, salty, and sometimes a little tangy depending on how it’s made. If you’re not a really spicy person, this might not be for you, however the spice level can be adjusted. Chillies can be deseeded and you can adjust the amount you spread over your confit chicken depending on your tolerance. It’s worth mentioning that eating ayam geprek with a rich coconut rice and some cool cucumbers can help balance things out. It’s pretty important that you make this with a pestle and mortar, if you don’t have one, now’s the time to go out and scoop one up.

Typical sambals will often call for an Indonesian shrimp paste, which is not something I have hanging around often but have used in the past. I substitute this paste with a few anchovy fillets to fill the preserved, fishy gap left by the paste. It works a charm, I reckon. Now, as well as the heat, you’re in control of the texture of your sambal and it’ll hinge on how you want the final dish to eat, but also, how much smashing you can be bothered to do… I like mine pretty chunky, but only the chillies, not the shallots, garlic or anchovies.

Smashed Chicken Leg, Sambal & Coconut Rice

Serves: 2

PREP TIME: 25 minutes + curing time

COOK TIME: 1 hour 35 Minutes

TOTAL TIME: 2 Hours

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