Ayam Pongteh - Peranakan Chicken & Potato Stew


Today's recipe is Ayam Pongteh, a Peranakan dish of chicken and potato stew. I make this dish rather often, but with pre-made paste which is easily available at wet markets and supermarkets. When my sister goes to Malacca with her family, I will ask her to buy packets of the readymade paste for me too. Fast and delicious one pot dish. I usually cook it in the afternoon and the chicken will absorb all the flavours of the sauce by dinner time, making it extra delicious!!

Why not make my own from scratch, I thought to myself. The recipes I looked at online seemed simple enough, I had everything in the kitchen: garlic, shallots, even gula melaka (thanks to Sister from her last Malacca trip!). Only item missing was Tau Cheo which is a fermented soya bean paste, which is the essential ingredient that gives this dish its umami and unique flavor.

My picture above doesn't do justice to the Ayam Pongteh, apologies that I did not take a better photo when dishing it out. I snapped a quick photo when it was cooking on the stove and come dinner time, it was just a mad rush to put the food and rice on the table, gather round and EAT! =p Trust me, it tastes better than it looks!

 Ayam Pongteh (Serves 4)
Source: Rasa Malaysia

Ingredients:

16-20 chicken midwings/drumlettes (I used both)
3 potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters (I used Brastagi potatoes)
2 shallots, washed and peeled
5 cloves of garlic, washed and peeled
1/4 cup light olive oil (or any cooking oil)
1/4 cup Taucheo (fermented soya bean paste, see reference photo below)
1 TBSP dark soya sauce
1 TBSP light soya sauce
2 TBSP chopped palm sugar (Gula Melaka)
3 cups water

Method:
  1. Pound shallots and garlic into a paste. Use a mortar and pestle, or hand held blender if you have one. I used my MagicMix but the amount of garlic and shallot was too little,  it was really not worth the washing up. =p
  2. Heat oil in a non stick pot at medium heat, add in the pounded shallot and garlic paste. Fry till fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Take care not to burn the paste.
  3. Add in Taucheo, dark soya sauce, light soya sauce and palm sugar. Fry gently till the sugar has melted.
  4. Now, add in the chicken and potatoes and mix till its well coated with sauce. Add in the water.
  5. Bring the stew to a boil, after which you can reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45min to an hour with the pot covered. 
  6. Serve hot with steamed rice
Enjoy!!

For reference:
Image result for tiger brand salted soya bean paste
This is the brand that I use

Chopped Gula Melaka, washed and peeled garlic and shallots

Blending the garlic and shallots

Fry blended garlic and shallot in oil at medium heat

Add soya sauces, gula melaka and taucheo

Fry till gula melaka has melted

Coat chicken and potatoes in the sauce, before adding in water

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