Grandma’s Chicken

I have some fuzzy remembrance of my Granny cooking a certain chicken dish. Though I was too young to know all the stuff she put into it, the flavour had lingered in my mind, refusing to fade out. I experimented and finally arrived at something close to what she would dish out. She usually served this chicken with peas pulao. You must try out grandma’s chicken.

Serves : 5 to 6 Persons

Prep. Time : 20 Min. + 60 Min. (marination)

Cooking Time : 10 Min. (active) + 40 Min. (passive)

Ingredients:

• Chicken (on the bone, cleaned and cut into small pieces) – 900 gms… (undressed)
• Onions (sliced finely) – 3 medium
• Tomatoes (finely chopped) – 2 big
• Green Chillies (slit) – 2
• Green Corriander Leaves (chopped fine) – 1 tbsp.
• Juice of Two Limes
• Ginger-Garlic Paste – 1 ½ tbsp.
• Oil – 3 tbsp.
• Sea Salt – ½ tsp. or to taste
• 1 ½ cups Hot Water

For the Masala:

• Dry Red Chillies (Bedgi) – 6
• Cumin Seeds –  1 tsp.
• Coriander Seeds – 1 tbsp.
• Pepper Corns – 8
• Cloves – 6
• Cinnamon – 1 inch
• Turmeric – 1 ½ tsp.

Step 1:     Wash the chicken and squeeze it dry. Marinate with the salt and lime juice and leave for at least an hour.

Step 2:    Grind the ingredients for the masala to a fine paste using a little water.

Step 3:     In a pan heat a tablespoon of oil. Add the ginger-garlic paste and sauteé for a minute. Add the marinated chicken and sauteé on medium heat till it changes colour. This should take about 5 minutes. Shut off the heat.

Step 4:     In another pan, heat the remaining oil and fry the onions till light brown. Add the tomatoes and sauteé for 2 minutes. Add the ground masala paste. Fry for another 4 minutes. Add a little hot water if the masala starts to stick to the pan.

Step 5:     Add the chicken. Mix it well and add 1 ½ cups of hot water and the green chillies. Cover and cook on low heat for 35-40 minutes or until the chicken is tender.

Step 6:     Garnish with green corriander and serve hot with rice, pulao, pao or sannas.