Chicken Kalas. Balinese Chicken Curry aka Bé Siap Mebase Kalas In Balinese Language

This chicken dish is known as "Bé Siap Mebase Kalas". It is kind of confusing really, because "Bé" in Balinese language means fish. Not sure why the Balinese always add the word "be" each time there is meat or poultry involve, regardless how they cook them. For example, Bé Siap always mean cooked chicken; Bé Sampi means Cooked beef; Bé Celeng means cooked pork; Bé Pasih means any cooked Fish. Anyway, Unlike the Javanese cooking or other island in Indonesia that use a ot of coconut milk in their dish, Balinese very rarely use coconut milk, they do use coconut for their cooking, just very rare milking the coconut, and one of those dish that is famous using coconut milk is this chicken kalas. Hope you like it. 

Bé Siap Mebase Kalas 

3 - 3½ lbs chicken legs, wash under cold running water - pat dry with paper towel

1½ cups thick coconut milk

2/3 cup water

1 stalk white part only lemongrass, lightly bruised 

1 sliced (1/8 - inch thick) fresh galangga, lightly bruised 

salt, to taste

Spice mix:

2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp kencur powder    

1/2 tbs freshly grated ginger

1/4 cup chopped shallots

2 tbs chopped garlic

1 tsp, or more chopped red chilli pepper

2 Balinese long pepper

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp toasted shrimp paste

1/4 cup water

Place all ingredients for spice mix in a blender, add about 1/4 cup of water, process until smooth. Pour this spice mix into the braising pan, add chicken legs, coconut milk, water, lemongrass, and the fresh galangga. Turn the heat to medium high, cook until the sauce start to boil, reduce the heat to low, braise until the chicken is cooked throughly, the sauce is reduced and thickened, about 35 to 45 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve with plain steam rice and simple saute green vegetables.