Saturday 8 September 2012

Chettinad Chicken Masala / Chicken Dry Curry



Chettinad is a small region in Tamil Nadu famous widely known for its delicious cuisine which very well reflects the authentic flavors of South India. People from almost all around the world have become fond of all the Chettinad recipes specially the non-vegetarian dishes. Kara kulambu, a spicy and tangy tasting vegetarian curry is another specialty of this cuisine. Luckily my neighbor is from that region and I have learnt some basic recipes from her which I'll be sharing with you later. Check out my beetroot coconut masala/beetroot pirattal recipe, it was one special recipe that she taught me. But today's recipe is from my Mom who learnt it from a recipe book she had. I love this preparation not only because it is chicken, but also because of the flavors. This Chettinad chicken masala is a dry version and has awesome flavors due to the addition of fennel seeds, cumin seeds and peppercorns. The masala powder made from these spices makes it too good and dry roasting these spices before grinding helps bring out the aroma and flavors very well. Goes well as sides with variety rice like pulao, biryani, fried rice, dal rice, sambar rice and also with chapatis and rotis. Lets see how to make this hot chicken masala. Try it out and let me know how you liked it. And thanks Mom for this wonderful recipe. 

To check out my other chettinad chicken recipe - Kozhi Vindhari/Chicken Vindhari click here!!

INGREDIENTS

(Serves 4 people)
  1. Chicken - 500 grams (chopped into big cubes)
  2. Shallots / Pearl onions - 75 grams (5 onions)
  3. Ginger - 1 inch long piece 
  4. Garlic pods - 1 
  5. Dry red chillies - 6 to 8 
  6. Cumin seeds - 3/4 spoon 
  7. Coriander seeds - 1 spoon 
  8. Fennel seeds - 1 spoon 
  9. Peppercorns - 1/4 spoon 
  10. Salt - As per taste
  11. Oil - 5 spoon (Gingelly oil preferred)
  12. Coriander leaves & Curry leaves - Few for garnishing (Optional)

PREPARATION METHOD

  • Wash chicken pieces well in water and keep them aside.
  • Heat a pan or wok and dry roast the following ingredients very slightly until you get a pleasant aroma. Take care not to over roast them or burn them. 
(For Masala Powder)
1. Dry red chillies - 6 to 8
2. Cumin seeds - 3/4 spoon
3. Coriander seeds - 1 spoon 
4. Fennel seeds - 1 spoon
5. Peppercorns - 1/4 spoon 
  • After the dry roasted ingredients cools down and reaches room temperature, add them to a blender make a fine masala powder out of them and set aside. This is the authentic Chettinad chicken masala powder. You will get nearly 2.5 spoons of this masala powder.
  • Peel onions put them in a blender and make a coarse paste out of it and set aside. 
  • Also make ginger-garlic paste and set aside.
  • Now heat a pan, add oil and after it heats up add the coarsely ground onions and saute until the raw smell goes. 
  • Then add the ginger garlic paste and saute for a few minutes. 
  • Now add the chicken pieces and saute well for 5 minutes. 
  • Now add the prepared masala powder and stir well.
  • After 2 minutes pour 1 cup of water, required salt and stir well. Cook on low flame.
  • Close the pan with a lid and cook until the chicken gets cooked well. Sprinkle water if necessary and stir occasionally so that the chicken does not get burnt. Please cook on low flame. 
  • When water evaporates and chicken seems well cooked remove from flame and serve. 
  • Garnish with coriander and curry leaves if you wish.


TIP 1: The masala powder used here can be used to make other chicken curries too. You can prepare it in larger quantities and store them for future use. While preparing this spice powder please be careful not to over-roast or burn the spices. Just a mild roasting will do.

TIP 2: Use freshly prepared ginger-garlic paste for better flavor. 

TIP 3: You can also prepare this using a pressure cooker, after adding a cup of water close the pressure cooker with the lid and pressure cook for 10 minutes on low flame. But the pan method will be the best.

TIP 4: If you want a semi-gravy consistency pour another cup of water and cook until the oil starts to peep out of the gravy.


Delicious and Flavorful Chettinad Chicken Masala is now ready!! Serve with rice or any Indian bread varieties and enjoy!!
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73 comments:

  1. my favourite dish! lovely presentation, looks delicious

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  2. amazing...i also heard abt chettinad spls..vl try it divs

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    Replies
    1. Thaks Preethi :) Do try and let me know your feedback :)

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  3. Mouth watering....Nice presentation.
    (manjusfoodbites)

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  4. Wow! looks too good.Deliicious.

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  5. ALWAYS CHETTINAD FOOD ROCKS DIVY... MY COUSIN TOO LIVE IN KARAIKUDI... CAN ENJOY MUCH MORE TASTY FOODS FROM THEM....
    VIRUNTHU UNNA VAANGA

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    Replies
    1. Yes Viji :) I love Chettinad food too.. Hmm so you have a cousin from that region eh?? Lucky girl you must have tasted more recipes for free :P

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    2. Ha..Ha..Ha... free food... Ofcourse dear... but there too mostly all of them like u.... NV fans...

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    3. Then I'll better settle down in Chettinad :P looks like that's the best fit for me :)

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  6. delicious dear ...Join me in Fast Food - Pasta event and Know your Sweetness - Honey event in my blog

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  7. Lovely presentation. Delectable chettinad chicken masala. Droolworthy.

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  8. Delicious Chicken gravy...Nice presentation

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  9. Looks so yum...sure tastes great....

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    Replies
    1. Yes dear tasted too good :) Thanks Tamil :)

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  10. Chicken chettinad looks delicious Divya.

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  11. Mouthwatering chettinad chicken Divya & what awesome clicks

    http://shwetainthekitchen.blogspot.com/

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  12. wow...looks awesome n mouthwatering...

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  13. Wow looks so good. Love to have this with rasam.

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  14. Looks very tempting...nice clicks Divya..

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  15. Yummy chicken tempting me dear

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  16. I've only tried Dried Curry once & I really like it! This looks like another gorgeous dish :)

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    1. Thanks Shirley :) Do try this sometime am sure you will like it!!

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  17. I have tried this curry in a very popular restaurant in Pune, looks so mouthwatering!

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    1. Oh is it..am sure you must have liked it!! Thank you so much Gauri :)

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  18. Divya, chicken looks like a dare-devil starring at me :P my husband wants this gonna try it dear... yummy clicks drolling here...

    Priya

    Javvariri Banana Payasam ~ Today’s Special
    Visit Cook like Priya



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    1. Hi sis..wow try this and am sure you both will love it :) Waiting for your feedback :)

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  19. my super master- chef sis... want to have a meal cooked by you... too talented I say

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    1. Hey thank you smart chef that was really a great compliment :) And I wish to really have a lovely cake baked by you :) Better come to India soon to give me a treat ok??

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  20. Divya....I am drooling here seeing this pic...and you know why right!

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    1. Yeah I know..Coz you have a love affair with chicken just like me.. :P btw thanks dear :)

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  21. Found you through Meena's blog......this really looks good. I was looking for a good Chttinad recipe, and this looks really really good. Bookmarking :))

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for the visit :) Welcome to my space!! Do try this and let me know ow much you liked it :)

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  22. lovely preparation divya :) you are an expert in chicken cooking..

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  23. color is attracting me a lot.. nice recipe dear..

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  24. This looks so flavorful and absolutely delicious!

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  25. I'm from Chettinad region!

    Amazing, Awesome pics :) Wonderful, keep blogging!!

    Do visit my blog http://seethaskichen.blogspot.com

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  26. woooooowwww!!!!diz is totally amazing...I love diz picture and the way u presented..Its really an awesome shot...!!!I'll try diz recipe soon.. :))

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much Shana :) Do try it and let me know your feedback :)

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  27. Thanks, I just prepared this with your help and it tastes good :-)

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for trying and sharing your feedback :) Glad you liked it :)

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  28. It's of no doubt tat ur chicken luks damn gud. . But chetinad masala contains Marathi mogu n kal pasi as d main ingredients. .u hav made normal chicken fry. .

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    1. Dear Amu thanks for the comment..But who said that chettinad recipes must contain marathi mogu and kal pasi, only some recipes from chettinad has these spices.. My neighbor is from Chettinad region and I have already clarified this doubt!! She cooks with spices and she said that marathu mogu is rarely added in their curries and that too sometimes only a pinch or so in Mutton curries... This was referred by her to my mom and now we cook it often, its not necessary to add marathi mogu in all chettinad recipes it has a very dominant aroma that might spoil recipes if you add it more!! She even makes simple carrot fry in chettinad style and she does not even add any spices there, will u say that its not a chettinad recipe? So no confusions here its a pretty good Chettinad recipe...

      Thanks!!!

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  29. Hi Divya

    Tried it out. Came out really good. Sooperb Taste. Well, You cant ask for more for a Sunday Lunch. Keep the recipes coming :):)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for trying it out Lokesh and thanks for the feedback too..!! Glad you liked it!! :)

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  30. Thanks so much Divya ! It tastes so nice and its not that laborious either.Thanks !

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    1. Hi Sushila :) Thanks for trying...!! Good to know that you liked the recipe :)

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  31. little miss chef24 July 2013 at 16:22

    hi I am a 11 yr old girl I love to try new recipies I tried this and it came out really good yummy thanks

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    1. Hi dear :) Sounds like you are a very brilliant kid :) Keep up the good work dear and thank u for trying this recipe.. way to go kid :)

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  32. its really very tempting dish...actually i too love chettinad style curries and masalas..hope to try this very soon ..do visit me at www.josculinaryjourney.blogspot.in

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  33. I tried this dish and because it contains no yogurt nor tomatoes, I used vinegar to grind the onions and garlic/ginger paste as this dish really needs some acid. At any rate, it was delicious and this is my go-to recipe for chicken curry now. My only question is that, by following your method, this chicken dish does not have the dark brown colored sauce that the pictures above have. My sauce was actually white! So I added some turmeric for color.

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    1. Hello Sulta, Thank you for trying and am glad you enjoyed the recipe. Color-wise, my dish turns out to be the same each time I prepare it. It is because of the dry red chillies you will get a nice reddish color. Am not sure what type of chilli you have used and also I have not mentioned vinegar anywhere, so that must have made a change. Thanks!!

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  34. I tried it... It was just awesome.. Thanks hun!!!

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  35. I prepared it today... It was awesome. Thanks hun!!

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    1. Thanks Meethendar for trying, glad you liked it :)

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  36. Hi.... just wanted to check with you... The spices quantity. Are they by teaspoon or tablespoon?

    Thank you

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  37. Hello Divya. I am planning on making this for my family tomorrow. One quick question. When you say "garlic pod" do you mean a whole bulb of garlic or just a few cloves?

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    1. Hi Paula, I mention cloves as pods, its not the whole bulb. Do try it am sure your family will love it :)
      Thanks!!

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  38. Hi Divya. It's me again. The dish is cooking now and it smells fabulous. Approximately how long do you think it will take for the water to evaporate?

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    1. Sorry Paula I just noticed your comment!! Am sure the water will evaporate in some minutes. There is no specific timing for it though. Hope you have started to relish the dish by now :)

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  39. Divya, what mouth watering dishes you have. The clicks are so amazing I'm just drooling. :). Thanks, Preethi

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  40. Mouthwatering!! Dish from my region.. :)

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  41. I have prepared it. It was awesome dish. My husband like this dish . Tastes good. thanks for ur recipie...........

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