Soto Ayam (Indonesian Chicken Soup)
Ingredients
• 2 ½ pounds Chicken, cut in pieces
• 3 to 4 ounces thin Asian noodles like Vermicelli
• 2 stalks Lemongrass, fresh
• 5 to 6 Kafir lime leaves
• 1 inch Galangal piece, chopped
• 2 Bay leaves
• 2 tbsp Garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp Ginger, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp Lime Juice, freshly squeezed
• 2 tbsp oil, any vegetable oil can be used
• 6 Shallot, chopped
• 2 medium sized Onion, chopped
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 1 ¼ tsp Peppercorn
• 2 tsp Coriander Seed
• 2 tsp Cumin Seed
• 3 tsp Turmeric, powdered
• Chicken bouillon, optional
For Garnishing
• Chili Sauce or Sambal
• Bean sprouts, blanched
• Shredded Cabbage
• Lime wedges
• Boil Eggs
• Green onions, chopped
• Fried Shallots
Steps
1. Start with making the spicy yellow paste. Add garlic, shallots, ginger, turmeric, peppercorn, cumin seed coriander seeds, and 1 tbsp Oil in a food processor or mortar and pestle to make a paste. (see recipe notes)
2. Once the paste is smooth, set it aside.
3. Now take a skillet and add the remaining oil in it. Heat over high heat.
4. Add in the spice yellow paste, kafir lime leaves, lemon grass and galangal. Cook until the oil separates. It can take around 4 to 5 minutes. remove from the heat and set aside.
5. In a large pot, add in chicken along with 8 to 10 cups of water. Boil the chicken for 5 minutes.
6. Take the chicken out of the pot and discard the boiling water. (see recipe notes)
7. Now again fill the clean pot with 8 cups of water and throw in the chicken back again along with bay leaves. Boil the chicken at high until bubbling then reduce the heat to simmer.
8. Skim off any extra foam on the boiling chicken and let it simmer for 40 to 45 minutes.
9. Now take the chicken out from the broth and shred it. Set aside.
10. In the broth, add in the prepared paste, sugar, chicken bouillon and salt. Taste to adjust the salt. Let the broth simmer for 15 minutes.
11. In meantime, cook the vermicelli noodle according to the pack instruction and drain them.
12. Once the broth is done simmering, strain it.
13. Now start plating the soup by adding the boiled vermicelli noodles, shredded chicken, and the broth over it.
14. Garnish with cabbage, bean sprout, fried shallot, boil eggs, lime wedge and a dash of hot sauce or sambal. (see recipe notes)
15. Serve hot and enjoy.
Recipe Notes
• If the paste is too thick and hard to grind, gradually add 1 to 2 tbsp of water.
• We are discarding the water to skim out the frothiness from the chicken. this step is necessary for a clean soup.
• You can set up a station for everyone to add their preferred topping for the soto ayam.
Nutritional Value
Calories: 382 cal
Fat: 29 g
Saturated fat: 9 g
Carbohydrates: 10 g
Sugar: 1.8 g
Fiber: 1. g
Protein: 28 g
Sodium: 941.2 mg
Cholesterol: 95.9 mg
