Roast Chicken with “Bajak” Chili Sauce

I recently wrote an article and recipe on Javanese Pan Fried Chili Paste (Sambal Bajak). The yield of the recipe is about a cup of paste, which to some of you, may be too much to keep around in the refrigerator for three months. If you are wondering what else you can do with it, then here’s a  recipe that I concocted with a very basic ingredients list.

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Baked chicken with Bajak Chili Sauce or Ayam Panggang Bumbu Bajak [A-yAm pAng-gAng boom-boo bA-jAk] is a simple dish to prepare. It’s not a quick cook type of recipe because we have to let the chicken baked/roast thoroughly before we put the sauce over it. The following recipe is easily adaptable; for example, use a cornish hen or fried fish instead of chicken pieces, add bell peppers, add garlic if you so desire. Have fun creating a different recipe with the sambal bajak.  I would love to hear from you what you can come up with.

Roast Chicken with Bajak Chili Sauce

Gather these ingredients:

4 pieces of chicken parts (in my case, there are 2 wings & 2 legs)
Salt & pepper
Canola oil or any neutral flavored oil
1/2 medium onion
1 tomato
1 Tbsp sambal bajak, or to taste
1 Tbsp Indonesian kecap manis (thick sweet soy sauce) or 1 tsp brown sugar mixed with 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp lime/lemon juice

Tools you’ll need:

Cutting board & knife
Baking sheet/pan
Aluminum foil (optional – to speed up cleaning time)
Saute pan
Spatula

What to do:

• Preheat the oven to 400 F.
• Clean & wash the chicken, then pat dry. Sprinkle some oil (about 1 tablespoon) and rub the chicken with it. Then, sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides.
• Place the chicken pieces skin side up on a baking pan lined with aluminum foil.
• Bake the chicken for 40-45 minutes until golden brown and the skin is crispy (My family likes the chicken pieces golden brown on both sides, so I flip the chicken at 20 minute mark, continue to roast for another 20 minutes, then flip again to crisp up the top side).
• While the chicken is roasting, slice the onion (about 1/8 inch thick) and dice the tomato.
• On a saute pan, put about 1 Tbsp of oil over medium high heat. When the oil shimmers, tip in the onion and season with salt & pepper. Let the onion caramelize before adding the diced tomatoes. Continue to cook until the tomatoes soften.
• Lower the heat to medium and add the chili paste,kecap manis and lime/lemon juice. Stir to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. It should have a balanced flavor of heat from the chili paste, saltiness, sweetness, and subtle tang from the lemon juice.
• Once the chicken is fully cooked, transfer to a plate and pour the sauce over the chicken.
• Serve with steam rice or naan (a type of flat bread originated in India) and whatever vegetable dish you have on hand.

1. 

   Auntie Katkat says:

   January 25, 2010 at 5:28 pm

   Fantastic food my type of recipe I have bookmarked your site and will return often

   reply
   • 

     Tuty says:

     January 25, 2010 at 6:44 pm

     @ Auntie Katkat: Thank you for stopping by and bookmarking my site. Please come back again soon or subscribe to the site feed.

     reply
2. 

   Pat says:

   January 27, 2010 at 10:53 pm

   You have a wonderful blog filled with so many delicious recipes! I enjoyed looking around and will visit again! Thanks!

   I came over from Cynthia’s

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   • 

     Tuty says:

     January 28, 2010 at 12:54 am

     @ Pat: Thank you for visiting and I look forward to your next visit soon.

     reply