May 6, 2013

Kerala style Chicken Dry Roast ....daddy special :-)


Hiya all…how have you all been? Looks like it has stopped snowing here and we’re hoping for some much deserved warm climate . We’re enjoying our backyard to the fullest. A week back we planted some plantlings and also bought some Roses and herbs and we are enjoying seeing them grow slowly and Lil’Appu can’t have enough of playing with the watering hose. The first time he held it, he sprayed water all over himself and din’t like it at all…he said ‘ot’ when the cold water hit his face :-) He can’t seem to tell the difference between hot and cold, if it feels hot he says ‘ot’ and if it’s cold he still says ‘ot’…I guess for him saying Hot is easier than saying Cold…Oh well! ;-)
Coming to today’s special recipe. It’s a Kerala style chicken dry roast and guess who made it? – my dad! Daddy (ya I call him daddy n not Dad) has an excellent taste when it comes to cooking.  Nothing fancy or anything, but whatever it is that he cooks always tastes great. He’s the youngest son in his family and remembers having a good time helping out his mom and sisters while they cooked. During his childhood he was always the vegetable peeler, non-veg chopper, coconut scraper and taste tester in the house it seems and he loves his Kerala food to be authentic and simple. Having lived as a bachelor for few years before marriage, he learnt to cook by himself and makes some excellent Keralite dishes. 

So last week when Manish and I returned home from work, what do we smell in the kitchen?…the lovely aroma of Chicken curry mmmmmmm and there were fresh made chapathis too!
I was so hungry I just took a chapathi and dug into it straight from the cooked pan itself and gave some to Manish as well and boy was it awesome, spicy with a dry gravy and lots of coconut slices (thenga kothu) for some crunch. That’s when daddy came in and asked ‘how’s my chicken curry?’ :-) and mummy starts murmuring ‘the spices n all were my measurements ok’!! Anyway I’m gonna give credits to my dad for this dish b'coz he did make it, with some help from mummy and this was a dish that just had to be on my blog .

I went about figuring out a way to nicely display it. Oh well…I suck at food styling and the lighting was poor as it was quite late in the evening…but I just took whatever pics I could.  My sis-in-law found it funny to serve rice with wine ;-) but this platter below is exactly what we ate with this gorgeous spicy chicken dry roast and it was an awesome combo .

Since I wasn't satisfied with the way the pics came out I wanted to try one last time in a different way and asked mummy  to pose for me holding the dish in hand and she happily obliged :-) 


Kerala style Chicken Dry Roast Recipe

You’ll Need
Chicken with bone (cut into small pieces) – 3 lb or 1.5kg 
Onion (thinly sliced) – 1½  large or 3 medium
Ginger  (thinly sliced and diced) – 2” thick piece
Garlic (thinly sliced and diced) – 4 cloves
Green chillies (sliced) – 3
Tomato (diced into chunks) – 1 large or 2 medium
Corriander powder – 2-3 tblsp
Red Chilli powder – 1-2 tblsp
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Garam Masala – 2 tsp
Salt – to taste
For tempering:
Coconut oil – 2 tblsp
Mustard seeds – 2 tsp
Dry red Chilli – 2-3
Curry leaves – 1 long sprig (8-10 leaves)
For Garnish
Corriander leaves (finely chopped ) – 1 handful
Fresh Coconut (thinly sliced) – 2 tblsp

Directions
1. In a large pan or non-stick kadai, heat the oil and add mustard seeds. Once the seeds crack, add the dry red chillies and curry leaves.
2. Add the sliced onions, ginger, garlic and green chillies and sauté until the onions turn soft and slightly golden brown.
3. Then add the spices – red chilli, coriander and turmeric powder and keep sautéing until the spices blend well  and starts to leave oil from the sides.
4. Now add the tomato pieces and mix well , cook it until the gravy looks deep brown and thick.
5.  Add the garam masala , enough salt to taste and coconut slices and mix again. Then add the chicken pieces and coat it well with the masala gravy and on low flame cover and cook for 15-20mins without adding any water.
6. Keep stirring in between and cook until any water in the gravy thickens to your liking. Check for seasoning.
7. Finally garnish with Corriander leaves and turn off the stove. Let the chicken dry roast rest in the cooked pan covered for another 15mins before serving hot with Rice, Rotis, Naan or Bread.

Tips and Suggestions:
1. Adjust the spices according to your taste and preference. We like it super spicy and hence these measurements.
2. You need not add coconut slices (thenga kothu) if you do not have it or do not like it.
3.  Using coconut oil gives a unique and authentic flavor and aroma , but you can use any vegetable or canola oil.
4. Covering and letting the dish rest after cooking will help blend in all the flavors.


Oh and before I stop for today, I took part in a Food Blogger Bake Sale last Saturday.  I baked up some Cupcakes and Cookies for the charity event. All about that coming up next, so stay tuned.

-Manju


23 comments:

  1. aa chicken roast kandittu vaayil kappalodanulla vellamundu... i love that thenga kothu part, normally we only add to our beef roasts normally, should try it for my chicken next time... i really admit - nalapachakam is always good... :)

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  2. the coconut bite lifts up the dish ,nowonder it tasted amazing with coconut oil .

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  3. wow!! this luks gorgeous. and when its by our daddy !!..u know..girls have that extra nish towards it :)and ur clicks are lovely as well

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  4. liked all your clicks manju :) sometimes i feel dad cooking is better than moms :)

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  5. I'm more excited about your foodblogger bake sale, I'll be watching on it. Yur recipe sound so delicious. I gonna try it sometime, I love spicy food and I love chicken chicken.. So this is perfect.:)

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  6. That looks delicious! I love the garnish with coconut slices...it's a new thing for me.

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  7. Manjuuuuuu......I can almost taste the spices in it...I kind of make similar chicken roast with boneless for kids sake. Dads always cook excellent, not sure how they do it...my dad makes yummy chicken and fried rice. Yes, Moms always like to share the credit :) I see that all the time in my family too hehe...

    I actually liked your pictures Manju!!! Glad to see part of your garden.

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  8. So lucky you can have Dad cook for you.....so sweet... Even if the food doesn't taste good, the love makes it yummy

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  9. No wonder daughter is grt cook ! So sweet of ur mum to hold the pathram for u :) My pappa doesnt even know how to make a tea ..ha ha after retirement he showed some signs of improvement with grating coconut and all, but he is still there ..No purogamanam..LOL !

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  10. Manju, loved your roast. Happy to see you getting settled. loved your garden as well.

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  11. This dry roast is mouth watering, Manju

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  12. hey super chef..do drop by quick picks and pick quicks as well when u get the time. have got something which wud be of interest to u. ;)

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  13. Good for your Daddy.... I am always impressed when men cook in the home (especially from our side of the world). My father can hardly boil water and even my own husband can only make a handful of very American dishes. I know you were happy to come home to this. It looks delicious. :)

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  14. Wanna try out this one dear... if comes out well, well- I'l send u de pics :). the recipe's specialty s coconut pieces I guess, Ya for me too its a new thing with chicken (I tried out pork with thengakoth ,& beef its mandatory ). So best of luck to me.... n thanks to uncle :D

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  15. hmm....looks yummy n wanna tryout dis one :), if it comes out well, welllll I'l send u pics :). For me too its a new thing -coconut slices with chicken & I think its de specialty of this dish... SO best of luck to me ;), Thanks to uncle...

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  16. I made this and pinacotta!!!!!!! Loved it Manju... The best thing about your blog is that i find them so easy to follow and the recipes are just tailored for my kitchen:) :) thanks to my friend Shilpa who shared ur blog with me:)

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  17. Thanks a lot Kavitha for the feedback. I'm so happy you loved the dishes. And I too thank your friend ;-)

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  18. This looks great....I am gonna try this for sure.

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  19. I tried this recipe and it was awesome!..I tried it again when I invited someone home and they loved it too!!..Your recipes always turn out great with the proportions you mention!!!

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