Soto Ayam - Indonesian Chicken Noodle Soup

Recipe by Louis Tikaram

Ingredients

4 boneless chicken thighs

8 cups chicken stock

1 stalk lemongrass

3 kaffir lime leaves

1 teaspoon salt

For the spice paste

3 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 red onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 knob fresh ginger, peeled & chopped

1 tablespoon roasted macadamia nuts (crushed)

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 teaspoon sea salt

To assemble the soup

Chicken stock from cooking the chicken

1 pack rice vermicelli noodles

½ bunch coriander leaves chopped

Lime wedges to serve

METHOD

Combine the stock, kaffir lime leaf, lemongrass and a pinch of salt in a medium pot and bring to a boil.

Once the stock has boiled add the chicken and reduce to a simmer then cook until the chicken is completely cooked, around 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the broth and set aside to cool slightly.

Make the spice paste

Heat ½ the oil in a small fry pan, add the garlic, red onion and ginger and fry until the shallots soften and start to brown.

Take off the heat then add cooked ingredients to a blender and blitz along with the remaining spices, nuts and coconut milk.

Back in the pot heat the remaining oil and fry the paste stirring constantly for about 5 minutes over a gentle heat until the oil starts to separate from the paste.

Add the chicken stock to the pot, season with salt and allow to boil and reduce slightly.

To serve

Soften the rice vermicelli noodles by submerging in warm water, let sit for five minutes then drain and rinse with fresh water.

To serve place the noodles into a bowl and shred the chicken on top then pour the broth over the chicken and noodles, add any type of condiment you like along with the chopped coriander and a wedge of lime.

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