Name: Indonesian Fried Chicken
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Indonesian
Ingredients: 1kg (2 lbs) chicken thighs and legs on the bone; 1 tsp salt; 1 tsp ground black pepper; 85g (1/3 cup) rice flour or cornflour (cornstarch); Rapeseed (canola) oil for deep frying; FOR THE MARINADE; 5 shallots, roughly chopped; 5 cloves garlic, smashed; 1 x 2.5cm (1 inch) ginger, roughly chopped; 1 x 2.5cm (1 inch) galangal, roughly chopped; 2 makrut lime leaves, stem removed and roughly chopped; 1 tsp ground coriander; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tbsp ground turmeric; 2 stalks Lemongrass, white part only, finely chopped

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I learned to make this amazing Indonesian fried chicken recipe in Bali. It’s really easy to prepare.

If you like your KFC, you are going to love this Indonesian fried chicken. It has so much more flavour and it’s lighter too. Just enough flour is used to coat the chicken that is marinated with a tasty sambal.

Really crispy and packed with flavour. Try this!

What is Indonesian fried chicken?

There are many different recipes for Indonesian fried chicken. Some are heavily coated in flour, while others are coated in a batter before frying. In this recipe, you simply coat the chicken with aromatic ingredients to marinate along with a small amount of rice or cornflour (corn starch).

One thing they all seem to have in common is the use of a sambal marinade, just like the one you will be making for this recipe.

What flour?

Although you will find many recipes for Indonesian fried chicken that call for wheat flour, it is far more common to use rice flour. Rice flour gives the chicken a nice, crispy exterior.

In fact, the chicken will stay good and crispy for quite some time after you finish cooking.

Is this Indonesian fried chicken gluten free?

You bet! Whether you used rice flour, cornflour (corn starch) or a combination of them both, this fried chicken recipe is gluten free.

If you are not on a gluten free diet and only have plain (all purpose) flour, that will work too.

Working ahead.

The chicken can be season with salt and pepper a good day ahead of cooking. It will penetrate the chicken and add more flavour.

You can also marinate the chicken for 24 hours. The longer marination time will be beneficial to the flavour.

Marinating time…

You really can marinate the chicken with the marinade ingredients and go straight to frying. For best results, marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes or even overnight. The longer the better.

To cooking tips…

Ensure that you use bone in chicken with the skin on for the best flavour and texture.
Be sure that your oil is hot enough before adding the marinated chicken. If it is not hot enough, the chicken will become greasy.
Rest your Indonesian fried chicken for a couple of minutes after frying. Then serve immediately.

What do you serve Indonesian fried chicken with?

As there are no spicy hot spices in the marinade, you might want to serve Indonesian fried chicken with sambal oelek or another good hot sauce.

Fried potatoes, green salad or fried vegetables like this Indonesian green beans recipe are also popular sides.

Step by step photos of Indonesian fried chicken

Ingredients for Indonesian fried chicken.

Get your ingredients together before starting. It’s easier that way.

I usually blend the chunky ingredients first.

You can then add the ground spices which will blend well with the prepared marinade.

Seasoning the chicken with salt and pepper.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. This can be done a day ahead of frying.

Covering the chicken with the marinade and flour.

Rub the prepared marinade into the chicken. Then add the flour.

Once mixed into the chicken, the marinade and flour should look like this.

Give the chicken another good stir to coat and then add it to hot oil to fry for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Fry until deep, golden brown and crispy. This usually takes 10 to 15 minutes.

If you like this Indonesian fried chicken recipe, you might also like to try some of these.

Indonesian Chicken Sate
Soto Ayam
Sambal Oelek – Indonesian hot sauce
Chicken with Sambal Matah
Babi Kecap
Spicy Green Beans Indonesian Style
Indonesian Bakso
Ikan Bakar – Indonesian Fried Fish
Nasi Goreng
Mee Goreng
Sambal La La – Spicy Clams
Indonesian Blackened Fish
Seafood Laksa
Chicken Rendang
Beef Rendang
Butter Egg Floss Prawns
Malaysian Chicken Curry
Malaysian Devil Curry
Ayam Masak Merah – Malaysian Red Chicken Curry
Chicken Kapitan
Homemade Kecap Manis

Have you tried this Indonesian fried chicken recipe?

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Yield: 4