Taliwang Chicken with the Traditional Recipes

Ingredients:
1 fresh chicken (about 2lbs/ 1 kg), cleaned and cut into serving pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1 red finger-length chili, thinly sliced, to garnish
Sprigs of basil leaves, to garnish

Chili sauce:
3 to 4 red finger-length chilies or 2 to 3 bird’s eye chilies, deseeded
4 shallots, peeled
1 teaspoon dried shrimp paste (trasi), dry roasted
1 teaspoon shaved palm sugar or dark brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice

Preperation/method:
Make the Chili Sauce by grinding the chilies, shallots, shrimp paste, sugar and salt in a mortar or blender, adding a little oil if necessary to keep the mixture turning. Heat the oil in a wok or skillet over medium heat and stir-fry the ground paste for 2 to 3 minutes until fragrant. Reduce the heat to low, add the lime or lemon juice and mix well. Remove from the heat and set aside. If prepared in advance, reheat the Chili Sauce just before serving

Season the chicken pieces with the salt and set aside for 5 minutes, then grill the chicken pieces over hot charcoal or under a preheated broiler until half cooked, 2 to 3 minutes. Brush the chicken pieces on both sides with the Chili Sauce and continue to grill to 10 to 15 minutes, basting with the sauce, until cooked. Alternatively, after brushing with the Chili Sauce, deep-fry the chicken pieces in the hot oil until cooked

Spread the remaining Chili Sauce on the cooked chicken. Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with freshly sliced chili and serve with steamed rice