Pong Teh Chicken (my version)

Pong Teh Chicken is Braised Chicken in Fermented Paste. This is a typical Nyonya (Straits Chinese or Peranakan) dish.

The Straits Chinese are the descendants of the Chinese traders who came to Malaya in the fifteen century and took Malay (local) wives. The Nyonya's way of life, language, food, customs and dressing have become an amalgamation of Chinese and Malay and they have even developed a style uniquely their own.

Pong Teh Chicken is a popular Nyonya dish in Malacca. To me it is a kind of comfort food and a one dish food which you can serve with steamed plain rice.

The basic ingredients in this dish is chicken, potatoes and fermented bean paste. Mychildren like carrots, so you will find carrots in my version of Pong Teh Chicken. I opt to omit sugar in this dish as I prefer the taste of natural sweetness of the carrots.

Pong Teh Chicken (my version)

Ingredients
1/2 chicken - cut into bite-sized pieces
2 potatoes - cut into small pieces
1 carrot - cut into small pieces
10 shallots
4 pips garlic
1 big onion - cut into wedges
2 tbsp fermented soy bean paste
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 cups hot water
1 tsp thick soy sauce
salt to taste

Method :

1. Pound / blend shallots and garlic till fine.
2. Stir fry the shallot and garlic mixture and fermented soy bean paste in oil till fragrant.
3. Stir in the big onion till soft.
4. Add in chicken and stir fry for about 3 minutes.
5. Add in potatoes and carrot. Stir fry for another 2 minutes.
6. Pour in 2 cups of water and thick soy sauce. Bring to a boil.
7. Lower the flame and continue to cook until chicken is tender.
8. Add salt to taste.
9. Serve hot.