Pallipalayam Chicken Fry (Kongunadu Cuisine)




My new found taste for Kongunadu Cuisine continues with many recipes that I have been trying for the last couple of days and this chicken fry is my favorite of all. I love this simple preparation yet the taste of this dish is very different and unique than any other chicken dishes that I have tasted. This recipe only uses small onions andd garlic and the only heat added to the chicken was from the broken red chilies and there are no tomatoes added here. This is a dry curry and the only variation that I did was to add some fennel seeds during the seasoning.A simple and satisfying dish when combined with rice and simple gravies like dhal or rasam. The original recipe is from the same "Kongunadu Kuzumbu Page" like my previous recipe.  Surprisingly the kids also liked this dish even though it was a little spicy for their tastes.

Ingredients:
1. Chicken, 1 pounds, cleaned and cut into bite-size pieces. I have used boneless, skinless chicken pieces here.
2. Dry red chilies, 5-6, broken and seeds removed.  The original recipe used around 10-12 chilies. For us, just using around 5-6 was way too spicy.
3. Peeled small onions, 1 cup, chopped finely.
4. Garlic, 4 cloves.
5. Curry leaves, a few.
6. Mustard seeds, 1/4 teaspoon.
7. Salt, as per taste.
8. Chopped cilantro, 1/4 cup.
9. Turmeric powder, 1/4 teaspoon.
10. Fennel seeds, 1/4 teaspoon. (optional).

Preparation:
Heat a pan with a tablespoon of oil. Once the oil is hot enough, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add the fennel seeds  and the broken red chilies and fry for a few seconds. Now add the chopped onions, curry leaves, and garlic and saute for a few minutes until the onions are translucent. Now lower the flame and add the turmeric powder, salt, and the chicken pieces and mix everything well. Keep the flame and keep stirring in between and let the chicken cook in its own juices. Once the chicken is cooked and the cilantro, mix well and switch off the stove. Serve hot as a side dish for rice, dosas or chapathis.

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