Monday, August 15, 2011

Belacan Fried Chicken 馬來盞炸雞 - "Malaysian Monday 50"


They might look like just another batch of ordinary fried chicken but in fact they are anything but ordinary.

This is a relatively new dish that is rather similar to the popular har jeong  kei (蝦醬雞, shrimp paste chicken) from Hong Kong/Southern China, and I won't be surprised if the creator was simply trying to recreate har jeong kei using locally produced belacan (shrimp paste) instead. What do you think?

Despite being quite pungent in it's raw stage; both the taste and smell of belacan are a lot mellower and "sweeter" after a light grilling. I have served this dish to friends who would never go near a block of belacan but can't have enough of these delicious fried chicken marinated with something that repelled them in the first place.

P.S I will do a post on har jeong kei soon so stay tuned!



serves 2 to 4 as part of a Malaysian meal
you'll need;
1/2 kg of chicken wings
2 x 3 mm slice of belacan (shrimp paste), lightly grilled and pounded*
2 garlic cloves, grated
a small knob of ginger, grated
3 tbs of premium oyster sauce
dash of sesame oil
1 tsp of sugar
dash of white pepper
4 tbs of corn flour
oil for frying
* Instant belacan powder can be used instead.



Grill belacan (shrimp paste) for a few minutes on each side on low flame, allow to cool then pound to a fine powder.



Marinate chicken for 1 to 2 hours.



Fry chicken in batches until golden and crispy.



Crispy on the outside but tender and juicy inside - serve as part of a Malaysian meal or as a perfect snack with a few cold beers.



I am hosting the event this month, please send all your entries to sureshchong@yahoo.com
To find out more about the event and on how to enter, please click HERE .

11 comments:

  1. Wow I'm sure the taste is awesome. Belacan is one of those super unami tasting ingredients.

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  2. I love what went into the marinade! I want some now!

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  3. That looks delicious and I happen to have some instant belacan powder, it makes life a lot easier lol

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  4. apa apa je yg ada belacan makcik pasti suka :)

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  5. Yum, I can just imagine the smell of the grilled belacan, and the finished chicken. I'm drooling.

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  6. I love the HK version and will definitely give this a try!
    Made soy poached chicken using your recipe, AWSOME!

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  7. I'm a kind of addicted to belachan and this sure kick buds! Thanks so much for sharing and hope you're having a great week ahead.
    Kristy

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  8. Ah chicken! :D

    If your friend don't like those shrimp paste, well I do! I love shrimp paste and I find the smell enticing. In some Southeast Asian countries, shrimp paste is used as a dip and an appetizer because the taste is just, well, tasty! Now this match-up, I can't wait for my boyfriend to cook this for me (I don't know how to cook, teehee!)

    Thanks for posting this and I can't wait to read your har jeong kei post!

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  9. I would love to try this recipe but with less shrimp paste I think :)
    I made a large pot of Malaysian chicken curry for tonight's dinner, simply delicious and I can't wait!

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  10. I haven't had this for so long, must make some soon now I know how to . I always thought har jeong kei is the same as this, so thanks for the clarification.

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  11. i can't really stand the smell of shrimp paste :P but this chicken doesn't look bad..looks pretty good! but i don't know if my neigbhbours would really appreciate the smell of shrimp paste waffling out of the house hehe

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