Chettinad chicken masala

Chettinad Cuisine

Mouth watering taste for Indians. I love my nativity cooking and I got this recipe from my periamma who instructed me correctly to grind the ingredients which turns chicken masala taste great.

Ingredients

• Chicken - 500 grams
• Ginger Garlic paste - 3 tbsp
• Cinnamon stick – 2 inch size
• Cloves - 4
• Star anize - 1
• Bay leaf - 2
• Cardamom - 1
• Black stone flower - 4
• Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Oil - 3 tbsp
• Curry leaves - 2
• Chettinad masala paste – Refer prepare chettinad masala paste
• Onion tomato paste – Refer prepare Onion tomato paste

Prepare Chettinad chicken masala - To Roast and grind

• Coriander seeds -1 tbsp
• Cumin Seeds - 1 tbsp
• Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Pepper corns - 1/2 tsp
• coconut - 1/4 cup
• Poppy seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch size
• Cloves - 3
• Red chilli - 2
• Curry leaf - 2 sprigs

Onion Tomato Paste - To Roast and grind

• Onion - 2 cut into cubes
• Tomato - 2 cut into cubes
• Salt to taste
• Oil - 1 tbsp

Method

1. Wash chicken with hot water and salt and marinate with turmeric. Keep aside.
2. Dry roast all ingredients under prepare chettinad masala in very low flame till raw flavor goes away. Allow it to cool down and grind to nice paste.
3. Place pan over your stove, add 1 tbsp oil and fry onion and tomatoes by adding salt to taste and cook till they are soft by covering with lid for 10 minutes. Allow it to cool down, grind it to smooth paste.
4. In a frying pan, add 3 tbsp oil, once it is hot add cinnamon stick, cloves, star maze, bay leaves and cardamom. Once you got nice aroma, reduce flame to low, add fennel seeds and black stone flower. Allow it to splutter. Do not burn any ingredients, if burnt, then u get only bitter taste.
5. Add ginger garlic paste. Fry till raw flavor goes away.
6. Add chicken and mix all ingredients finely and cover it with lid, cook for 2 minutes till the chicken oozes out water. Add chettinad masala paste along with salt .
7. Mix it well and cook with lid for another 5 minutes so that the flavour of all spices will mix thoroughly and gives nice aroma with chicken.
8. After 5 minutes, add onion and tomato paste along with water (as your wish, I added 1 glass of water) and mix and cook it till the chicken is completely cooked. For me it takes 20 mins.
9. Reduce the flame to very low and allow it to cook for 10 more minutes. Slow cooking makes your curry even more tasty.

Finally garnish it with coriander leaves , curry leaves and serve with rice or roti, chapati, naan, parata . It taste great with dosa / Idli.