Ayam Buah Keluak Recipe

Me: What are the most important dishes from the Peranakan culture Popo?
Popo: You don't know? It's Ayam Buah Keluak and Babi Ponteh.
A. Diana: Someone said if you can master these two dishes, you are ready to get married.

I think third time's a charm as I finally managed to recreate this dish which tasted similar to Popo's  version. I have eaten so many Ayam Buah Keluak dishes and Popo's one is different because the her dish is reddish in colour. The other versions are usually black in colour as they add the buah keluak filling into the rempah.

Disclaimer:
1) Every family has their own preference and the recipes differ by a little. I share mine because I grew up eating my Popo's cooking and still prefer her version. (Even though I've travelled all the way to Malacca to try the different dishes)

2) If we are related or if you're my makan buddy, please divide the portion by two. For example, my recipe says for 4 pax. But if we are super close, it's only for 2 pax. Come on, you know we are big eaters...

3) There's a cheat version and Popo's authentic method. Both ways yield the same taste and I'll use Popo's traditional method when I have the time.

Cooking time: Half a day for cheat version and 4 days for Popo's method
Portion: 4 people

Ingredients
Half a chicken chopped (600g)

Asam water 4 tbsp
Sugar 1tbsp
Salt 1tbsp

Buah Keluak

Minced pork 4 tbspn

Prawns 2 pieces to be minced

Sesame oil 1 tsp

Light soya sauce 1 tbsp

Sugar 1 tsp

* Cheat 8 Buah Keluak nuts already broken and separated. (Bought it from Tekka Market for $12-12 nuts and paste included)

Popo soaks the nut for 3 days and scrubs it daily. Discard and change water daily. After the third day, use a small screwdriver and hammer to break a hole and dig the fillings out. Good luck and byebye manicure because this is a physically-intensive process. You will also definitely find a few rotten pieces which are greenish in colour and should be discarded.

Rempah
Candlenuts 6 pieces
Blue Ginger 6 thumb size slices
Red Chilli 8 medium size
Shallots 15 medium size
Lemon grass x1 white portion only
Belachan x1 tbsp
* Cheat Tumeric powder (Popo uses 1 thumb-sized turmeric chopped into small slices)
* Cheat Dry Chilli Powder (Popo uses 4 dry chilli, rehydrated and de-seeded)
Coriander Powder x1 tspn
Oil 1 cup

Method
1. Chop the chicken and marinate it with half a tablespoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder for 30 minutes.

2. After 30 minutes, boil the chicken to remove excess salt and turmeric powder.

3. While waiting, mix the minced pork, minced prawns, sesame oil, light soya sauce, sugar and buah keluak fillings in a bowl and stuff them back into the nuts.

3. Simmer the nuts in 200ml of water for an hour. Skip this step if you want to preserve the reddish colour in your dish just like how Popo does it. I like this step because I love the taste of the buah keluak.

4. Bland the ingredients for the rempah and fry it until the reddish oil floats on top of the it. It should take about 10-15 minutes.

Tip: Use more oil or else your rempah will burn. Scoop out the excess oil after the dish is done.
        Use medium to slow fire for your rempah so that it doesn't burn and stir frequently.

5. Add the chicken to the rempah and stir fry for 5 minutes. 

6. Add the buah keluak and water and stir for 5 minutes.

7. Add the asam water, salt and sugar a little at a time to suit your liking. Simmer for about 20 minutes and the dish should be done!

PS: I'll only make this for family or if I really sayang you because it is so time-consuming and a lot of physical work is involved in the process. Not many pictures taken too as my toddler hid my phone under the couch and I only managed to find it at the end of the day.