Ayam pansuh is Sarawakian specialty specifically more common among the natives. Traditionally, ayam pansuh is prepared by cooking a chicken with minimal amount of water in a bamboo stuffed with tapioca shoot, which later will set upon on open fire. Employing this method of cooking, free range, local breed chicken which normally have tough and chewy meat will tenderize under steam pressure that accumulate and circulate within the bamboo. In city, where luxury of open fire and bamboo is out of equation, ones still can mimic the taste, aroma and texture of traditionally prepared ayam pansuh using conventional slow cooker or cooking it in a heavy bottomed pot under low heat for longer duration. In any methods, the trick behind is to cook the chicken with minimal amount of water without it getting burned.
Cooking chicken with minimal amount of water also posed problem in which during cooking process, water tends to seep out of chicken especially the part that is not in contact with water leaving the end result less succulent. However, parts in which there are plenty skin covering such as the drumsticks and wings rarely have this problem as the skin act as container that prevent water to excessively seep out of the flesh. After knowing the tricks behind, anyone can fools their guests into believing that one has prepared ayam pansuh which in actuality, just employing new method of cooking that gives similar taste, texture and aroma of traditionally prepared ayam pansuh.
