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Chicken Rendang – a rich and aromatic Malaysian-Indonesian chicken stew simmered with spices and creamy coconut milk. Bold, flavorful, and absolutely irresistible—the only rendang recipe you’ll ever need!
Not too long ago, a rendang controversy erupted when MasterChef UK judges claimed that chicken rendang should have crispy skin. This statement enraged people across Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia, sparking a full-on social media storm.
As a Malaysian food blogger, let me set the record straight—chicken rendang, or any rendang for that matter (beef, lamb, you name it), should never have crispy skin. The sauce is meant to coat the meat, infusing it with all those incredible flavors. Rendang with crispy skin? Absolutely not!
Easy Chicken Rendang Recipe
I’ve got the perfect chicken rendang recipe for you! While rendang originated in Indonesia, it’s incredibly popular and loved in Malaysia too. Chicken rendang is slow-cooked and simmered in a rich, flavorful sauce. My recipe makes tender chicken, packed with bold, rich flavors and the irresistible aroma of exotic spices.
I love making this easy chicken rendang recipe at home, especially served with Nasi Lemak. While it takes a bit of prep and patience, the result is absolutely worth it. Every bite of this chicken takes me straight back to Malaysia, my home country. It’s a dish close to my heart, and I hope you’ll love it as much as I do. Enjoy!
Be sure to check out my step-by-step video and tips below to nail this recipe perfectly!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Ingredients For Chicken Rendang
- Chicken thighs
- Cardamom pods
- Cinnamon stick
- Coconut milk
- Cooking oil
- Kaffir lime leaves
- Lemongrass
- Toasted grated coconut
- Star anise
- Water
- Cloves
- Sugar
- Salt
Ingredients For Spice Paste
- Dried chilies
- Lemongrass
- Galangal
- Ginger
- Garlic
- Shallots
Please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full details on each ingredient.
Recipe Variations
- Beef Rendang: You can easily swap the chicken for beef. Try using cuts like chuck or brisket—beef takes a bit longer to cook, but it gets super tender and soaks up all those amazing flavors.
- Lamb Rendang: If you’re into lamb, go for shoulder (bone-in or boneless). It’s perfect for slow cooking and gets super tender, soaking up all that delicious, aromatic sauce.
How To Make Chicken Rendang
Alright, for the Spice Paste, just toss all the ingredients into a food processor and blend it until everything’s nice and smooth.
Heat up some oil in a skillet, then toss in the Spice Paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and cardamom pods. Stir it all around until it smells amazing. Next, add the chicken and lemongrass, and give everything a good mix so the spices coat the chicken nicely.
Now, pour in the coconut milk and water, then let it simmer on medium heat. Stir it every so often until the chicken’s almost fully cooked.
Throw in the kaffir lime leaves and toasted coconut, and give it a good stir to mix everything in with the chicken. Then, turn the heat down to low, cover it up, and let it simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the chicken’s nice and tender and the liquid’s mostly dried up. Taste it and add a little more sugar or salt if you need to. Serve it right away and enjoy!
Secrets To Perfect Chicken Rendang Every Time
- I always make sure to blend the spice paste until it’s nice and smooth. The smoother the paste, the better it mixes with the chicken and ensures every bite is full of flavor.
- I’m never skipping toasted grated coconut—it adds this rich, nutty depth to the rendang that really makes a difference. It’s totally worth the extra step!
- Patience is key! I let the rendang simmer on low heat so the chicken gets nice and tender, soaking up all the spices. The longer it cooks, the better the flavor!
- I like to give my kaffir lime leaves a little tap with the back of my knife before adding them. It helps release all that incredible fragrance and flavor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, soaking the dried chilies is key! Just use warm or room-temperature water and let them soak for about 15–20 minutes until they soften up. This makes it way easier to blend into a smooth paste.
Coconut milk is what gives the rendang its rich, creamy sauce, but you can use coconut cream. Just dilute it with a little water to get the same consistency.
If your rendang is too watery, it’s probably because it hasn’t simmered long enough. Just let it cook on low heat to let the liquid reduce and thicken up.
Yes! Rendang actually tastes even better the next day once all those flavors have had time to really come together. Just pop it in the fridge, and when you’re ready to enjoy it again, simply reheat!
You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3–4 days. If you want to keep it longer, just freeze it for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to dig in again, make sure to thaw it completely before reheating!
This recipe is only 383 calories per serving.
What To Serve With Chicken Rendang
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do. If you try my recipe, please leave a comment and consider giving it a 5-star rating. For more easy and delicious recipes, explore my Recipe Index, and stay updated by subscribing to my newsletter and following me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for new updates.
Other Recipes You Might Like
Chicken Rendang
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. boneless and skinless chicken breasts , or thighs, cut into cubes
- 1/3 cup cooking oil
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 3 star anise
- 3 cardamom pods
- 1 lemongrass, white part only, pounded and cut into strips
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 5 kaffir lime leaves, bruised
- 5 tablespoons toasted grated coconut, kerisik
- 1 tablespoon sugar , or to taste
- salt , to taste
Spice Paste:
- 6 shallots
- 1 inch galangal
- 3 stalks lemongrass, white part only
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1- inch piece ginger, peeled
- 10 dried chilies, (chili arbol), seeded
Instructions
- Put all the ingredients of the Spice Paste in a food processor. Blend well.
- Heat the oil in a skillet, add the Spice Paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and cardamom pods and stir-fry them until aromatic. Add the chicken and lemongrass, stir to combine well with the spices.
- Add the coconut milk, water, and simmer on medium heat, stirring frequently until the chicken is almost cooked.
- Add the kaffir lime leaves, toasted coconut, stir to blend well with the chicken. Lower the heat to low, cover the lid, and slowly simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender and the liquid has dried up. Add more sugar and salt to taste to taste. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- I always make sure to blend the spice paste until it’s nice and smooth. The smoother the paste, the better it mixes with the chicken and ensures every bite is full of flavor.
- I’m never skipping toasted grated coconut—it adds this rich, nutty depth to the rendang that really makes a difference. It’s totally worth the extra step!
- Patience is key! I let the rendang simmer on low heat so the chicken gets nice and tender, soaking up all the spices. The longer it cooks, the better the flavor!
- I like to give my kaffir lime leaves a little tap with the back of my knife before adding them. It helps release all that incredible fragrance and flavor.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’ve had the same experience as others: delicious, but pale and far more liquid than anticipated (using chicken thighs). I turned the heat up and left the lid off to reduce it more quickly (after seeing little change after 30 minutes), but it still wound up very “brothy.” As for color, I wonder whether I needed to brown the paste more at the outset. When you say fry the paste until aromatic (as I thought I did), how long does that take and does it make the paste a deep brown for you? Thanks for the great recipes. I think my Indonesian grandmother would have approved.
Thanks, Roger.
Hi Roger,
I had the same problem…but then I put the temperatur to the maximum heat without covering with the lid. Just wait and stir at the end.
I found the same issue as other commenters – it did not have the same rich colour as the picture. I added paprika to try and make it darker. It was also very liquid – I used coconut cream instead of milk and no water but still needed to remove the chicken and boil for about 15 mins to get it to thicken. It tasted good though. I have some Kashmiri chilli powder that is very red and I might try to use that next time.
I used very bright red dried chilies, you can try Kashmiri chili powder next time!
I bought a rendeng curry paste awhile back and have a bunch left. How would you do it with that?
Just add chicken.
The recipe is delicious, but i have two questions:
1) the cooking time until the liquid was dried up was 2.5hrs, so way longer than the 30 mins in the recipe. The cup measurement, are those US cups? Thought to maybe use less liquid next time
2) the colour of my dish differs greatly from yours, its not dark at all. I saw in a previous reply that it should be brown, but im thinking none of the ingredients would make it brown?
Yes US cups. Different beef has different water content.
It’s a perfect recipe. I blended a piece of fresh turmeric to the spice paste to enhance the taste and aroma!
Yummy!
How come your chicken rendang came out brown and mine was white. I used all the same ingredients.
It shouldn’t be white. The ingredients used won’t make it white.
Same here…
Wouldn’t toasted coconut make it brown?
I noticed that the recipe requires coconut cream for beef rending, and coconut milk for chicken. Any reason?
It’s fine, it’s really up to your preference.
The way I understand the rendang dishes which need to be soft and fluffy, in the chicken version…I would skip using pieces with skin!…The truth is Eating soft skin it’s not appetizing… do you agree?
thank you.
It’s personal preference. We are used to eating chicken with skin.
If i am using 1 whole chicken cut into 16 pieces (with bone), do i use the same amount of ingredients or should i double it ?
Also, i do not have galangal as i live abroad. Is there any substitute or can i leave it out ?
Please weight the chicken and increase the increase the ingredients accordingly. You can skip galangal.
I will use a whole chicken cut into pieces instead thighs. Neck and wings make wonders in the flavor department. Meat curries require to cook longer to get the real authentic flavors. Thighs only good for quickies and not for randang style which requires lengthy slow cooking process over a couple of hours. Beef randang is so much better flavor wise than that of lamb.
Galangal is the posher cousin of ginger. You can substitute.
I don’t recommend to substitute. Different flavour. Besides galangal is cooling, ginger is heating.
Can i use whole choicken with bones
Yes.
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I tried making this today but it was runny and pale not dark and reduced like yours even after simmering for 30 minutes.
You just have to keep reducing it for a long time!
I linked to this post years ago on my site and I’d like to add a photo in the post. They still come to you for the recipe. May I have your permission? Let me know. Thanks!
Hi Kelly, that’s great. Thanks for checking!