Soto Ayam is a yellowish spicy chicken soup, usually clear, served with nasi himpit (compressed rice cubes) or rice noodles with a variety of toppings.
Soto is a popular dish in the Nusantara or Malay Archipelago. It consists mainly of broth, meat, and vegetables found in warongs, a casual, family owned outdoor eatery. There is no fixed recipe and the taste varies from family to family and region to region. In Indonesia, it is often classified by region with different meats and ingredients used. One notable distinction is the presence or absence of coconut milk in the broth. Bandung (West Java) soto is clear while Medan (North Sumatera) soto is with coconut milk.
In Malaysia, Soto Ayam is a yellowish spicy chicken soup, usually clear, served with nasi himpit (compressed rice cubes) or rice noodles. Again, there are variations found in the different warongs around the country. Some years back during one of my visits, I came across this soto ayam spice mix at the Central Market in Kuala Lumpur where one can find an array of Malay crafts and foods. I bought several packets home and was able to introduce my boys to this delicious dish. Of course those spice mixes are long gone and I have not been able to replenish my stock. I had a craving recently for this fragrant noodle soup and the craving had to be satisfied. I checked several recipes, all very different, and decided in the end that I should put it together the way I remembered it.
Here is my adaptation with the ingredients I had on hand. I had purchased some candle nuts and a packet of rice cube (ketupat) mix during my most recent visit to Malaysia. Candle nuts can be substituted with macadamias. The rice cubes can be easily prepared with mashed cooked white rice spread onto a rectangular dish and compressed or weighed down with something heavy. It should then be left to cool before cutting into cubes. I found Chinese celery at my regular Asian grocery store. Chinese celery has a more intense flavor and is used mainly in stir fries and soups. It may be substituted with cilantro. It is known as daun sop or daun saderi to the Malays.
Soto Ayam
Ingredients
- 6 cups water (1.4 liters)
- 1 piece bone-in chicken breasts (skin removed)
- 2 stalks lemongrass (bruised)
- 1 inch ginger (bruised) (30g)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 8 oz thin rice noodles (240g) or 4 portions of rice cubes
- ¼ cup vegetable oil (60ml)
- 6 shallots or 1 big onion, sliced
Spice Paste
- 6 shallots or 1 big onion, cut into small pieces
- 4 cloves garlic
- 6 candle nuts or macadamias
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- ¼ tsp ground pepper
Toppings
- 2 hard boiled eggs (sliced)
- 2 pieces pan fried tofu (sliced)
- 8 oz bean sprouts (blanched) (225g)
Garnish
- 1 stick Chinese celery
- 2 red chilies (sliced)
- 1 lime (cut into wedges)
Instructions
- Grind spice paste ingredients in a blender adding a little water if necessary.
- Bring 6 cups (1.4 liters) of water to boil. Add chicken breast, lemongrass, ginger, and cinnamon stick. Reduce heat allow to simmer for 45 minutes. Remove chicken breast and shred the meat. Set aside.
- In the meantime, cook (boil) eggs, pan fry tofu, blanch bean sprouts , and boil rice noodles. Set aside.
- In a fry pan, heat oil. Fry shallots or onions until brown and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Fry spice paste with oil remaining in the pan until fragrant, about 5 to 6 minutes.
- Transfer fried spice paste to boiling soup.
- Give it a good stir to get spices well mixed into the soup. Allow soup to simmer for another 15 minutes. Turn off heat.
- Divide rice noodles or rice cubes into 4 bowls. Pour soup over noodles or rice cubes. Garnish with toppings and fried shallots or onions. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
A big THANK YOU to all who participated in my CSN Giveaway. A number was assigned to each person who left a comment and random.org generated the winning number. The winner is Victoria of Mission: Food. Congratulations Victoria! I hope you enjoy shopping at the CSN Stores.
A very special THANK YOU to CSN for their generosity.
Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day! 😎
Anncoo says
WOW Biren! You made soto ayam? This is my favorite but I don’t know how to cook this before. Thanks for sharing this delicious soto ayam 🙂 Bookmarked!!
Belinda @zomppa says
Delicious!! I am definitely keeping this recipe!
Sharon @ Fun and Life says
This looks delicious! I would love a bowl right about now :D. The funny thing, I’m Malaysian and I’ve never heard of Soto! How terrible is that lol. I can’t wait to try it now when I go back.
Biren says
That’s ok Sharon. There are so many kinds of fod in Malaysia and it is hard to know them all especially when you are away from there. Glad I was able to introduce you to a new dish. 🙂
lequan says
Wow! What a fabulous dish of noodles. I have not heard of soto ayam before. I would sure love a bowl right now. The weather is getting cooler again here and this is the perfect bowl of comfort food. I love noodles with boiled eggs in them. This sounds delicious with all the wonderful ingredients.
Congratulations to Victoria! Have a great weekend, Biren!
The Mom Chef ~ Taking on Magazines One Recipe at a Time says
Congrats Victoria!
I wish I could have been in the kitchen while this was cooking so I could smell all the wonderful aromas it created. I’m so glad that you share these dishes with us. Thank you Biren.
Victoria says
Thank you so much, Biren!! I can’t wait to start shopping! This Soto looks fantastic as well. I’m always learning about new and interesting dishes from you 🙂
Biren says
You are most welcomed! I hope you enjoy your shopping. It is fun to rediscover some of my childhood favorites. 🙂
tigerfish says
I just had chicken noodle soup (adding turmeric in there) for lunch but it’s not soto ayam cos I did not use the rest of the spices….:O
Reeni says
A new dish for me Biren! Looks wonderful! How great that you could introduce your kids to this. Your presentation is beautiful.
torviewtoronto says
beautiful and delicious meal
Yuki Endo says
Am definitely printing this recipe out. Will try to look for the ingredients; am pretty sure I can hunt them down if desperation for some soto gets the better of me!
Biren says
Hi Yuki Endo! Thanks for visiting and commenting. I hope you find the ingredients. You will not be disappointed.
kristy says
Guess what! I am surrounded by all these food but I’ve never really tried this before. I think you’re going to bang me for sure. haha… But I still remember the aroma of this fragrant soup coming from my friend’s order. It is really irresistible! The only thing is I don’t like taking the rice cube. I am never a rice person. So, maybe I should try making it at home with some yellow noodles instead huh. I bet my kids will love it too. Bookmarked this. Thanks. Hope you’re enjoying your snowy weekend.
Cheers, Kristy
Joanne says
What a simple and yet delicious dish! I love the addition of coconut milk…such great flavor.
Devaki @ weavethousandflavors says
I LOVE SOTO AYAM…It has been a decade sicne I have had any and everytime I visit you I weep a little because you ALWAYS cook the things I love to eat but belong in my past….I must resurrect these delights. Thanks Biren for always making such drool-worthy eats 🙂
chow! Devaki @ weavethousandflavors
Biren says
Devaki, like you I have not had these goodies in a while. I figured that I should try to recreate them before they totally fade out of memory. Sadly, some have but hopefully I can resurrect those that are still in my memory bank.
Angie's Recipes says
Soto Ayam is new to me…love how it looks…light, fresh and delicious!
rebecca says
great dish tweet to me on twitter I will reply to you 🙂
love learning about Malaysian food from you
Love Rebecca
Monet says
I agree…this does look and sound just delicious. Everyone’s comments are evident of how tempting this recipe is! Thank you for sharing with me tonight! I hope you have a great weekend, my dear.
Magic of Spice says
This looks fantastic, I have never seen candlenuts before…I bet the aroma is just amazing 🙂
Congratulations Victoria 🙂
Lot-O-Choc says
Oh wow this looks delicious, I would love to try this, mmm making me hungry!!
kitchen flavours says
Your soto ayam looks delicious! It has been awhile since I had this!
Hannah says
That rich coconut broth sounds luscious! I’d love to pour it over some simple noodles and tofu… I think it would make just about anything taste good. 🙂
Mary says
This look temptingly delicious. I really love rice noodles and I see you have used them here. I know I’d enjoy a bowl of this. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
elisabeth@foodandthriftfinds says
Biren-Such a beautiful and healthy dish. I love the step-by-step photo directions, and your thorough instructions. It’s as if I was reading it right out of a food magazine. Photos of it are stunning, and it look so delicious!
Three-Cookies says
Looks really tasty, now I miss this dish. Its been a while since I visited Malaysia/Singapore. I should attempt to make this
Lucy @ Lucyeats says
Wow that looks so fantastic and the herbs and spices go so well together. So healthy too! I can’t wait to try this!
Sommer @ ASP says
Biren, this looks amazing and so healthy! Congratulations to Victoria!
penny aka jeroxie says
I need one this today to brighten up my day.
Nithu says
Lovely dish.
MaryMoh says
Mmm…love this dish but it’s a lot of work. Beautiful pictures.
Jay says
wow..Biren…this is really delicious..
Tasty appetite
denise @ bread expectations says
Wow! Your soto recipe is fantastic! Your memory is flawless! I know this was really delicious. Soto Ayam is probably my favourite Malay/Indonesian dish, after Ikan Asam Pedas. Love your rendition and thinking of making it this weekend. You are very inspiring!
Nasifriet says
This is a really interesting recipe. I’ve eaten this only once in my lifetime, as this “mi sup” is more popular in Semenanjung M’sia. This will definitely be one of my next attempts in my kitchen. I’m sure it will be a hit with the guys. Thanks for sharing, Biren.
A Little Yumminess says
Love Soto Ayam…never thought to make it at home
DongXing says
Biren, I love soto ayam but never quite know how to make it. I will definitely attempt this one weekend and see what my other half makes of it. I am drooling already….
Biren says
It was really good, if I can say so myself. Will certainly be making it again. It is also very mild and suitable for kids. 🙂