Posted on 12th Jul 2025

Malaysian Coconut Chicken Curry (Nasi Kandar)

A rich and fragrant chicken curry served with coconut pandan rice.

Cuisine

Time

1 hr mins

Servings

2 - 3 people people

Ingredients

1 large onion
3 cloves garlic
½ thumb sized piece ginger
4-6 chicken thighs on the bone
2 medium sized tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato puree
500 ml chicken stock
½ tbsp palm sugar
2 tbsp light soy sauce
100 ml coconut water

The Whole Spices

2 pandan leaves
20 fresh curry leaves
1 cinnamon stick / cassia bark
3-4 star anise
5 green cardamom pods

The Marinade

2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp garam masala
½ tsp chilli powder
1 ½ tsp sea salt / table salt

The Rice

1 cup jasmine rice
½ cup chicken stock
½ cup coconut water
2 pandan leaves
¼ tsp sugar
¼ tsp salt

Method

• Wash the rice 3 times until the water runs clear and then place in a small saucepan along with the rest of ‘the rice’ ingredients. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil on a high heat. Once vigorously boiling, turn the heat down to a low heat and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the liquid has all evaporated. At that point, switch the hob off and let it sit in its own steam for a further 15 minutes.

• Finely chop the onion, garlic and ginger and then slice the tomatoes into chunks.

• Mix ‘The Marinade’ together in a mixing bowl and then chop the chicken thighs in half and place in the same bowl. Massage the spices and salt around the meat.