Curry chicken is the de facto family gathering dish in Singapore and Malaysia. Often made in huge portions, this curry is meant to be eaten all day and perhaps the next. In fact, it is even said that this vegan Singapore chicken curry tastes better overnight!
In our version of this curry, we batter and fry the tofu and king oyster mushroom before adding them to the curry to create a realistic texture. The batter also soaks up the curry, making it extra tasty and toothsome.
The slight Chinese influence of star anise and cinnamon add a highlight of flavour that marries to the curry harmoniously. The fragrance from all the aromatics combined is just incredible. It has to be sniffed to be believed!
Spend the time slowly frying (tumis) the spice paste (rempah) and enjoy the wonderful aroma of this vegan Singapore chicken curry as it cooks.
Ingredients
- Batter
- Spice Paste
Instructions
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Blend all the spice paste (rempah) ingredients. My poor blender is very old, she doesn't blend so well anymore.
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Heat a non-stick pan over low heat and gently fry the rempah. When the rempah darkens and becomes thicker, it is ready.
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Cut the yellow onion and potatoes into quarters and cut each piece into half again. Add the yellow onion to the spice paste in the pan and fry for about 3 minutes.
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Turn the heat up to medium. Add about 300ml of water, the curry leaves, lemongrass, star anise, cinnamon, and 1 tsp of vegetable stock powder. Bring to boil and add cut potatoes.
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While the curry is boiling, slice the king oyster mushrooms into half lengthwise, and make one or two scours from the hard side about 3/4 of the way. Mix the batter and dip the mushroom and tofu into the batter.
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Heat about 800ml or four fingers depth of oil in a large and deep saucepan. Drip a small amount of batter into the oil, if the batter cooks and rises immediately, the oil is hot enough. Dip your mushrooms and tofu in the batter and carefully drop them into the pan.
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When they are floating and not too brown, you can remove and drain them.
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Check to see if the potatoes are fully cooked by poking them with a skewer or fork. Add 100ml of coconut cream and mix well.
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Add the deep-fried mushroom and tofu into the curry and cook for a further minute or so.
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Serve hot with baguette, plain rice, or coconut rice (nasi lemak).
