After two weeks of intense Chinese cooking, it’s time I get back to my root of cooking Malaysian dishes. As a born and raised Malaysian, with the unique Nyonya heritage, I have to say that I am very fortunate to have learned many different–and exotic–techniques and styles of cooking from my family. On any given meal, I usually combine different kinds of food on my dining table: Malaysian, Chinese, Nyonya, and Indian. As a melting pot of diversed ethnicity and cultures, this is how Malaysians eat.
Chicken curry has always been my favorite, but I hardly spend time and effort making chicken curry from scratch. First of all, I can always rely on my favorite chicken curry paste; secondly, I just don’t have the patience, especially when my craving hits. But this past weekend, I felt inspired and motivated. I wanted to make a mean pot of chicken curry properly, without cheating with curry paste. Good recipes are meant to be shared…
There are many different varieties of chicken curry available in Malaysia: Indian, Muslim-Indian (Mamak), Chinese, Malay, and Nyonya. There are probably thousands of chicken curry recipes but each takes after the basic recipe of chicken curry, adapts, and enhances it accordingly. While different version renders its distinct taste (and presentation), the underlying flavors of chicken curry are pretty much the same–spicy, rich, aromatic, highly addictive, potentially aphrodisiac, and remarkably scrumptious.
Chicken curry can also be “wet” or “dry.” The wet version is watery (mostly from coconut milk and water) and the dry version has a thicker curry gravy and tastes more intense. The recipe I am sharing today is Curry Chicken Kapitan–a “dryer” curry and a Nyonya adaptation of the Indian curry chicken. (Kapitan is the name given to appointed Chinese chiefs during the Portuguese and Dutch colonization in Malaysia.)
To feast your eyes, check out the chicken curry photoset above, a total of six (6) pictures for your ogling pleasure. If you like what you see, then do try out my chicken curry recipe below.
If you like curry, you might also like the following curry recipes on Rasa Malaysia:
Indian Squid Curry (Gulai Sotong)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb boneless chicken thigh and/or breast (cut into small cubes/pieces)
2 lemon grass (cut into 4-inch lengths, use only the white part, pounded)
6-8 pieces kaffir lime leaves
1 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon lime juice
Salt to taste
Spice Paste:
1 1/2 inch galangal
1/2 lb fresh red chili (seeded and sliced)
5 shallots (sliced)
1 inch ginger
6 candlenuts (soaked in warm water)
1/2 inch fresh turmeric
1/4 teaspoon belacan (fermented shrimp paste)
Method:
- Blend all spice paste ingredients to a very fine paste.
- Heat up some cooking oil in a work and stir-fry paste until aromatic or a thin layer of oil rises to the top.
- Add chicken and continue stirring until it’s almost cooked.
- Add the coconut milk and continue to simmer for another 15-20 minutes, over low heat.
- Add salt to taste and serve hot.
Cook’s Note:
If you can’t find candle nuts, you can use macadamia nuts instead.
Related Posts:
- Chicken Curry
- Red Curry Recipe
- Curry Laksa (Curry Mee) Recipe
- Green Curry Recipe
- Beef Massaman Curry Recipe
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{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi, i m a Malaysian (Penangite!) currently living in Sacramento area, CA..Wish to know where can i get the Candlenuts (Buah Keras)? Wihtout this ingredient, will the Curry Chicken Kapitan aroma remains? Thanks!
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KK replied:
You can replace buah keras with walnut…
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aiks…. kapitan chicken…. can’t hold myself from ordering everytime it is listed in any of the restaurant menu… I love this….
and can’t deny that.. as Malaysian, food belongs to which races no longer a matter to us, food become something that hold everyone together….
and again.. I am sorry as i can’t make use of your recipe yet… as none of us can cook..:P
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This looks really delicious. I personally prefer the wetter curries to the drier curries.
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I have been searching high and low for a good curry chicken recipe, there are so many on the internet. But yours look the best. Your photos are amazing!
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Gigi - you can get them at Indian stores.
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Finally! Chicken curry recipe from scratch. Those chicken curry looks good. Not too watery and not too thick either. I am so going to try this.
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Wow that looks so good!
Do you leave the lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves separate from the paste?
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that looks JUST like the kind we make at home! the recipe is a bit different but still, that’s the first familiar looking chicken curry ive seen yet. no 2 chicken curries are alike!
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Ned - yes, lemon grass and kaffir lime paste are separate from the spice paste.
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That looks amazing. Im gonna try making this using your chicken curry kapitan recipe. I have all the ingredients but galangal so i should be able to make this.
Great food for breaking of fast!
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Until I visited Malaysia, I’d never had Nyonya cooking. I fell in love with it, of course, and brought back several wonderful cookbooks. I’ve made many different Malaysian curries, but never this one. So now I’ve got a wonderful recipe to add to my repertoire!
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GiGi
You might want to try use macadamia nuts in lieu of candlenuts. Not sure if it will affect the aroma of this curry but it works well with same other I tried.
Ange
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It looks absolutely gorgeous! Very flavorful and spicy! A wonderful dish which I adore…
Cheers,
rosa
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Ooh chicken curry.. my favourite curry of all! Try add some fresh stalk of lemongrass, trust me, it’s worth the taste! and aroma, I tell you! :-)
But in your dish, u used lime leave so that makes it wonderful, sorta like rendang too..:-)
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this is one of my favorite curries, my late grandmother used to make this and rest assure, the whole pot will be gone by dinner (there were 8 of us) :)
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I live for a good chicken curry and that is actually the subject of my upcoming column this week.
Definitely have to try yours.
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That curry looks tasty!
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I love this dish! However, my preference would be to cook with bones in, although this is not always the western way
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This sounds wonderful! I love all kinds of curries…aromatic and flavor-intense dishes are something I crave! This is definitelygetting bookmarked!
Some questions: Candlenuts are not readily avaialble here…will rthe curry be really sad without it? Ot is there a substitute?
Also, I just got some belacan (yay!)…how do you store yours?
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mmmm I love curries! Never had this one, looks delicious. I will have to try this one soon.
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Chichajo - you can use macadamia nuts, they work the same. For the storing of belacan, just store it in the fridge in an air-tight container (so it doesn’t stink up your fridge.
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Hey, just to let you know this weekend, my reader is bringing Mani Chai all the way from Boston..woohoo. :)
Live Crawdad supplier along 22 is close but a new one (affiliated with he boiling Crab ) opened up at 13908 Brookhurst st#b, Garden grove.
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Yum x 1000. This is exactly what I need right now!
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Time to make some curry chicken soon.. :)
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hi bee yin, a fan of your frm klang. I was in Penang over the weekend, went the whole of island searching for the A1 curry chicken paste but couldnt find it. And then I just happen to visit the TTDI market looking for saffron, and there it is. The best curry chicken paste! :) have yet to try it….
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rasa malaysia,
i’m a big fan of yours here in england. i’m goin to make these recipe today for dinner. but i can’t find fresh turmeric. can i used the conventional grounded and bottled one? if yes, how much tbsp or tsp for these recipe? thank you so much.
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Master - yes, you can use turmeric powder. As to how much, I would say you can start with 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon first and add more if you wish. It’s mostly for the color and also the turmeric aroma. Taste the flavor, if it’s not enough, add more. :)
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Hi there! When do I add in the lemongrass and lime leaves?
Sorry if this sounds stupid, but what are the exact item in the ingredient list that goes into the spice blend?
Thanks!
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Yes, please say exactly which ingredients are included in the spice blend. Thanks.
Also your photos of the dish are lovely. But I’m wondering . . . is that a piece of cinnamon sticking up? (What is that brown stick-like thing in the photos?)
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Rasa Malaysia, you’re such a genious. I love your photos and it makes me hungry everytime I browse your blog.
I love Chicken Curry and I would love to try to make it from scratch from this recipe… the photo of the chicken curry look very very good!!
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Gigi,
yes you can use macadamia instead of buah keras. what buah keras does is just makes the texture thicker…same effect with macadamia. good luck!
db
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Hi,
I am an Australian with a Nyonya wife from Penang living in Shanghai:) My wife speaks Mandarin very well but cannot write but can read a little (Convent Light School). My Ayi cooks Shanghainese which is horrible and greasy and cold. I found Curry Kapitan and using Google Translate, I came up with this translation :) Can someone advise if this is anywhere near correct? I cannot find Chinese translation for Candlenuts. I hope the Chinese characters post correctly.
Thanks
Mark Bourne
Shanghai China.
食谱: 咖喱鸡甲必 Chicken Curry Kapitan.
成分: Ingredients:
1.5磅去骨鸡大腿和/或乳腺癌（切成小方块/件）
[1.5 lb boneless chicken thigh and/or breast (cut into small cubes/pieces)]
2柠檬草（切成4英寸长，只用白色部分，捣碎）
[2 lemon grass (cut into 4-inch lengths, use only the white part, pounded)]
1.5英寸南姜
[1 1/2 inch galangal (southern ginger)]
0.5磅红辣椒（种子和切片）
[1/2 lb red chili (seeded and sliced)]
5青葱（片）
[5 shallots (sliced)]
1英寸生姜
[1 inch ginger]
6 candlenuts （浸泡在温水）
[6 candlenuts {buah keras or kukui nut} (soaked in warm water) – macadamia nut can be used as a substitute but is less bitter]
0.5英寸新鲜姜黄
[1/2 inch fresh turmeric]
1 / 4茶匙虾酱（发酵虾酱）
1/4 teaspoon belacan (fermented shrimp paste)
1杯椰奶
[1 cup coconut milk]
檸檬葉
6-8片叶子檸檬葉石灰
[6-8 pieces kaffir lime leaves]
一汤匙莱姆汁
[1 tablespoon lime juice]
盐味品尝
Salt to taste
Method:
1>> 混合所有的香料非常精细粘贴。
[Blend all spices to a very fine paste.]
2>> 热了一些烹调油在炒锅和炒粘贴到芳香或薄薄的一层油上升到顶端。。
[Heat up some cooking oil in a wok and stir-fry paste until aromatic or a thin layer of oil rises to the top.]
3>> 添加买鸡，并继续搅拌，直到它几乎煮熟。
[Add chicken and continue stirring until it's almost cooked.]
4>> 加入椰奶和继续炖煮另一15-20分钟，小火。
[Add the coconut milk and continue to simmer for another 15-20 minutes, over low heat.]
5>> 添加盐味和服务热
[Add salt to taste and serve hot.]
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i just finished cooking this delicious curry. but u really should’ve put in the recipe that lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves need to be seperated.. cos i blended the lemon grass all together with the spice paste. lucky i did put lime leaves seperate .. frm experience. it taste delicious anyway, just a bit rough in textures due the lemon grass being blended in it. i also added some water cos i like more watery curry. thanks for the recipe.. this is my first attempt making curry and its actually eatable ahaha…
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Missus - thanks for sharing the techniques as to separating lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves :)
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Greetings from Dhaka Bangladesh,
I just love trawling through food sites & yours is just incredible.Superb Photography adds to the success of all your recipes because we can judge what the finished product should look like.
I enjoy your writing style & since I am very much home bound, the different blogs transport me to worlds that are so different from ours, bringing the exotic and the unusual right to my doorstep. My deep desire to travel & see the world is often satisfied just going through wonderful blogs like yours. Congratulations. Zeenath
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Oh I forgot to ask. In the recipe for Chicken Curry Kapitan, do you actually use 1/2 lb of red chilies? Are these fresh or dried red chilies. !/2 lb in my opinion will be TOO HOT even though we eat very hot food. Is this a typing mistake ? Also we do not get candle nuts or macadamia nuts here? Can we substitute cashew nuts or almonds instead? Thanks
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
1/2 fresh red chilies for the recipe. No, they shouldn’t be too spicy. Try it.
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lemon grass if very expensive in my neck of the woods. I bought some lemon grass powder but I don’t know how much of this to use. Help! Thanks.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
I’ve not used lemon grass powder this chicken curry recipe. Based on the rest of my quantified ingredients for this chicken curry recipe, I suggest start with a spoonfool and continue to add to taste. You can start once the broth starts boiling.
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