A Nyonya chicken curry thick with candlenut, lemongrass and kaffir lime, gentler than Indian curry and finished with a squeeze of lime, eaten with rice or roti.

Kari kapitan is a Peranakan signature whose name likely honours the Kapitan Cina, the community headmen of colonial Penang and Melaka, though kitchen legend prefers a cook telling his captain what was for dinner. The rempah of candlenut, galangal, turmeric and belacan marks it as Straits Chinese: Chinese technique married to Malay spice. Penang's Nyonya houses treat it as a benchmark; the starred kitchen at Auntie Gaik Lean's keeps it on the menu as a measure of the old repertoire.

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Make it at home

Serves Serves 41 hr 20 minIntermediate

Ingredients

  • 800g chicken thighs on the bone
  • For the rempah: 8 dried chillies, 6 shallots, 3 cloves garlic, 4 candlenuts, 3cm galangal, 3cm fresh turmeric, 2 stalks lemongrass, 1 teaspoon belacan
  • 300ml coconut milk
  • 4 kaffir lime leaves
  • 1 tablespoon tamarind water
  • 3 tablespoons oil, salt and sugar
  • Lime wedges to serve

Method

  1. Blend the rempah ingredients to a fine paste with a splash of water.
  2. Fry the rempah in oil over medium-low heat for 12 to 15 minutes until fragrant and the oil separates; do not rush this step.
  3. Add chicken and coat in the paste, then add coconut milk, lime leaves and 150ml water. Simmer uncovered 35 minutes.
  4. Season with tamarind water, salt and a little sugar; the gravy should be thick, golden and clinging.
  5. Rest 10 minutes, squeeze lime over, and serve with rice or roti jala.

Editor tip. Candlenuts are the thickener; if you cannot find them, macadamias substitute closely, but do not skip the nut or the gravy stays thin.

Common allergens: Shellfish (belacan), Tree nuts (candlenut).