Soto Ayam

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken, about 1.5kg
• 2.5 litres water
• 8 shallots, peeled
• 6 garlic cloves
• 4cm piece fresh turmeric, peeled (or 2 tsp ground turmeric)
• 3cm piece fresh ginger, peeled
• 4 candlenuts or macadamia nuts
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 3 stalks lemongrass, bruised
• 6 kaffir lime leaves
• 3 bay leaves (Indonesian salam leaves if you have them)
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 200g rice vermicelli
• 200g beansprouts
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, halved
• 4 tbsp crispy fried shallots
• small bunch celery leaves or coriander, chopped
• 2 limes, cut into wedges
• 6 red chillies, boiled and blended with 1 tsp salt, for sambal

Before you cook

• Blend the shallots, garlic, turmeric, ginger, candlenuts, coriander and white pepper with 4 tablespoons of water to a smooth paste.
• Soak the rice vermicelli in warm water for 15 minutes, then drain.
• Pour just-boiled water over the beansprouts, count to ten, and drain them.
• Blend the boiled chillies with salt to make the sambal and set it in a small bowl.

Steps

1. Put the whole chicken in a large stockpot with the water and bring it slowly to a simmer.
2. Skim off the grey foam that rises for the first 10 minutes until the broth runs clear.
3. Simmer the chicken gently for 35 minutes, then lift it out onto a board to cool.
4. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the blended spice paste for 10 minutes until it darkens and the oil separates.
5. Scrape the fried paste into the broth along with the lemongrass, lime leaves, bay leaves and salt.
6. Simmer the broth for another 25 minutes so it turns golden and takes on the spices.
7. Pull all the meat off the cooled chicken and shred it into rough strips with your fingers.
8. Taste the broth and add salt until it tastes rounded rather than thin.
9. Divide the drained vermicelli, beansprouts and shredded chicken between six deep bowls.
10. Ladle the hot broth over each bowl, straining out the whole aromatics as you go.
11. Top each bowl with half a boiled egg, a heap of fried shallots and a pinch of chopped celery leaves.
12. Serve with lime wedges and the chilli sambal so everyone can sharpen their own bowl.