Ayam masak merah, or in English — Spicy Tomato Chicken, is one of the popular dishes in the Malay community in Singapore. It’s there in weddings… And I mean if you’re like me and all your friends are getting married because it’s THAT age, you’re bound to be served ayam masak merah every week. Crazy I know.
Even if it’s not at a wedding, I remember my mum cooks ayam masak merah at least once a month, in her book of daily recipes for us kids when we were growing up.
But as we all should already know, local Asian foods are probably not the healthiest thing around. For this dish, the authentic version uses ketchup (and lots of it!) to bring the taste out, on top of sugar and salt. I eliminated all of that and instead use fresh tomatoes chopped up finely and slow cooked to bring out the sweetness in this dish.
And then I top it off with a tablespoon of honey.
Delicious I tell you.
I suggest if you really want the authentic version, save it for a restaurant that serves really really good one. Make it worth it. But on nights where you don’t want to compromise your health and your family’s, try this healthier substitute version out. It’s tasty and it’s healthy, I’m sure the family will love it.
Healthy Ayam Masak Merah (Spicy Tomato Chicken)
Serves – 4
Time needed – 45 mins
Cost – ~$1.70 per serve
Here’s what you need:
- 3 large red tomatoes, diced finely
- 100g cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 medium red onion, sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cinnamon
- 5-6 whole cloves
- 5-6 whole cardamoms
- 1 star anise
- 1/2 lemongrass, halved and opened up
- 300g chicken (I had two thighs and breast, sliced)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, halved into 2 parts
- 1 tbsp pure honey
- 2 tbsp dried chillies made into chilli paste
- 250ml water
- Spring onion, for garnishing
Here’s how you do it:
- Begin by preparing your herbs and spices and set aside. You also want to dice the tomatoes finely as we’re going to use that for our cooking as our ‘tomato puree’.
- Heat a non-stick skillet on medium high. Add in 1 tbsp of olive oil, toss in chicken pieces and cook for 6-8 mins, turning once.
- Remove from heat and set aside.
- Using the same skillet, add in another tablespoon of olive oil and toss in herbs and spices. Cook until fragrant covered.
- Add in chilli paste and diced tomatoes. Give it a stir and add in water. Turn the heat to low, you want to cook this part for about 20-30 mins until the tomatoes soften and becomes a thick like gravy texture.
- Add in honey, give it a stir and then add in cooked chicken.
- Give it a final stir and remove from heat.
- Serve hot with brown rice!
How much this costs:
*Keep in mind that this numbers are a rough guide. It depends on where you buy it and when. At the end of the day it’s possible to eat healthy without breaking the bank. Also, ~ denotes the items that should already be in your pantry for a long time or it’s a very small amount. I’ve also added $1 to the total price in this recipe for all the ~ items.
- 3 large red tomatoes, diced finely $1.80
- 100g cherry tomatoes, halved $0.90
- 1 medium red onion, sliced ~
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped ~
- 1 cinnamon ~
- 5-6 whole cloves ~
- 5-6 whole cardamoms ~
- 1 star anise ~
- 1/2 lemongrass, halved and opened up ~
- 300g chicken (I had two thighs and breast, sliced) $2.50
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, halved into 2 parts $0.40
- 1 tbsp pure honey $0.20
- 2 tbsp dried chillies made into chilli paste ~
- 250ml water
- Spring onion, for garnishing ~
Total price = ~ $6.80
Price per serve = ~ $1.70
How much calories and macros:
Calories: 190, Protein: 17g, Carbohydrates: 11g, Fats: 9g Sugar: 7g
