Indonesian Inspired Meal from a Christmas Spice Box

I came back an icy cold, miserable London in the middle of January to find a rather large box with a peculiar smell waiting for me. Knowing my passion for (almost) all forms of food, Stuart's mum had very thoughtfully bought me a box of Indonesian spices (close enough to Malaysia:) for Christmas.

My wonder box contained 9 different types dry and wet spice mixtures, a bottle of sweet sambal and a bottle of sauce for roast pork.

First meal out of the box - sate ayam with nasi kuning, fresh pickle and sweet sambal. Traditionally none of the dishes go together but I wasn't going to let it stop me. The chicken was marinated overnight with the spice mixture, oil and lemon juice and cooked in a hot, non-stick pan with no extra oil for about 10 minutes. The rice, cooked with the turmeric and coconut mix, turned out bright yellow and smelling nutty and fragrant. For the pickle, thin slices of cucumber, carrot and red onion were steeped in a mixture of rice wine vinegar, water, sugar and salt. The sweet sambal was served straight out of the jar.

I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised how well the meal turned out. All the spicing was authentic enough especially the chicken. To be honest I was a little doubtful about the sate spice mix when I set out to marinate the chicken but it 'matured' really well. It tasted even better. The yellow rice was nice but dessicated coconut from the mix missed the 'umph' of fresh coconut milk. The pickle, the only dish I made from scratch, was refreshing next to the fiery sambal. Those chilies had a real hit the back of the throat kick to it - Stuart choked and I teared. What a nice pair we make :)