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 :-) H  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