Ayam penyet is one of the tastiest dishes in Indonesia, and it is also a popular dish amongst Western food fans. The ingredients used in the ayam penyet set include fried enoki mushrooms, crisp toufu, and salted egg sauce. These ingredients can be mixed and matched to create a variety of different combinations. It is a great meal to eat for a casual dinner with family or friends.

Salted egg sauce

This is one of my favourite stalls in the Ayer Rajah Food Centre. The owners Ila and Azman Md Yasin have been in business for over two years. They started their stall at Lorong 5 Toa Payoh and recently relocated to the newer Ayer Rajah Food Centre. As you might expect, their ayam penyet is the star of the show. Their fried enoki mushrooms are also on the menu and I must admit, they do a fine job of retaining the springy texture of the original.

Their ayam geprek set is a hit too. It is the star of the show and the largest item on the menu. Not only are they able to cook up a large quantity of the fried chicken, they have managed to keep their odour to a minimum.

In the stall's small menu, there is a plethora of deep fried food to choose from, with a few seafood options thrown in for good measure. For $7, you can have a good ol' fashioned ayam penyet set with salted egg, prawns, and sotong, along with a large portion of fluffy rice to boot.

Fried enoki mushrooms

The best way to enjoy fried enoki mushrooms is to dip them in a soy-based sauce. This is a great way to eat healthy while still snatching a quick calorie-laden snack.

It's easy to find fried enoki mushroom apéro at your nearest food court or hawker centre. This is a good thing, as it's the perfect snack to splurge on during an impulse purchase. However, don't be fooled into thinking these are cheap. They are a bit pricey compared to their seafood counterparts. That said, you might just get lucky. For instance, I got the aforementioned fried enoki mushrooms as well as a beef lung and a potato patty at one lunchtime splurge at Mantul Ayam Penyet, a hawker outlet at Ayer Rajah Food Centre. And they're all good.

One of my favourite ayam penyet sets is the aforementioned fried enoki mushroom apéro. In addition to the mushrooms themselves, I also received a small bowl of sambal belacan, a red finger chilies sauce that's been slow cooked for two hours.

Spicy sambal belacan

If you love spicy foods, then Ayam Penyet is an Indonesian dish you'll definitely enjoy. This food set is a combination of fried chicken and tofu, along with sambal. The crispy chicken skin and dry meat make for a flavorful dish.

For the chicken, you'll want to get a good mix of lemongrass, turmeric, ginger, and galangal. You'll also need garlic and coriander, and a couple of teaspoons of oil. Once everything's ready, you'll fry the chicken until golden. Serve with slices of cucumbers, a sambal belacan, and white rice.

To make sambal, start by heating oil in a pot. After it's hot, add all the ingredients and stir until the oils have merged. Heat for about five minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a clean jar. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

When you go to Warung Surabaya on Orchard Road, you'll get a hearty kick from their sambal belacan. It's a thick and sweet chili paste that tastes a lot like sambal tumis.

Crispy toufu

If you're in the market for an Indonesian dish, you should try Ayam Penyet. It's a traditional dish, and you can find it in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. This chicken rice dish is known for its spicy sambal, which is made with chilli, garlic, shrimp paste, and shallots. You can even add some fried tofu to your plate!

One of the most popular restaurants in Singapore is Ayam Penyet Ria. Their restaurant opened in Lucky Plaza in 2005, and has since expanded to Jurong Point and Bedok Mall. The restaurant's menu features a wide variety of Indonesian cuisine, and has long queues during the weekends.

Another great place to go for Ayam Penyet is Telok Ayer Street Chicken Cafe. Located in the NTU Canteen 2, this fast food restaurant serves up tender, juicy chicken. While not the authentic Indonesian version, this cafe has already earned a loyal following. In addition to the classic penyet, Telok Ayer also serves fried tofu and fried fish. They also offer a set meal, which comes with your choice of rice and drink.