Chicken curry kapitan recipe by Rick Stein

Rick Stein gives his take on the Malaysian dish chicken curry kapitan

Ingredients

• 1kg boneless, skinned chicken thighs
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 fat lemongrass stalks
• 400ml coconut milk
• 6 kaffir lime leaves
• 2 tsp palm or light muscovado sugar
• Juice ½ lime
• A handful of coriander leaves, roughly chopped, to garnish
• Salt

For the kapitan curry paste

• 6 dried red kashmiri chillies
• 4 heaped tablespoons desiccated coconut
• 250g shallots or onions, roughly chopped
• 6 fat garlic cloves
• 50g peeled fresh galangal or ginger
• 2 tsp turmeric powder
• 4 fat lemongrass stalks, outer leaves removed and core roughly chopped
• ½ tsp shrimp paste
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• Steamed rice, to serve

Method

For the kapitan curry paste, cover the dried chillies with boiling hot water and leave them to soak for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a heavy-based frying pan over a medium heat, add the desiccated coconut, and stir it around for a few minutes until lightly golden. Tip on to a plate and leave to cool, then tip into a mini food processor and grind quite finely.

Drain the red chillies, put them into a mini food processor with the remaining ingredients and the toasted coconut and grind everything into a smooth paste.

Cut the chicken thigh fillets into small chunks. Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole or large, deep frying pan over a low heat. Add the chicken and stir-fry for 2 minutes until lightly golden. Lower the heat slightly, add the spice paste and fry gently for 5 minutes, stirring now and then.

Meanwhile, cut away and discard the top two-thirds of each remaining lemongrass stalk. Bruise the bases with the end of a rolling pin.

Add coconut milk, lemongrass stalks, kaffir lime leaves, sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt and simmer for 30 minutes until the chicken is tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened slightly. Add the lime juice and simmer for one more minute. Scatter over the chopped coriander and serve with steamed rice.