ANDHRA CHILLI CHICKEN

I come from a family of fabulous cooks. Even my uncles add creative twists on regular recipes which make their dishes taste out of this world. This is one such recipe I grew up eating and is a ‘must do’ each time I visit my uncle’s home in India. It took a lot of arm twisting to get this recipe out of him as he has no recipe; it is all in his head. Even as I am writing about this, my mouth is watering and try as hard as I have, I am unable to create the magic that he does with this recipe. Nevertheless, I can bet that you will love this recipe if you make it.


INGREDIENTS:

Whole chicken cut into bite sized pieces

Ginger garlic paste, 2 tsp

1 bell pepper cut into strips

Curry leaves

Green chillies split, 8

Salt and pepper

Masala powder-

11 cloves dry roasted

8 cardamom pods, dry roasted

2 inch cinnamon, dry roasted

1tsp coriander powder

Sauces-

Green chilli sauce, 8 tsps

Soy sauce, 4 tsp

Vinegar, 1 tsp

Ajino moto – 1 tsp (optional)

Red color mixed in a little water (optional)

Microwave the coriander powder for 1 minute. Grind the dry spices and mix with the coriander powder and set aside.

Mix in the chilli sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, red color and aji no moto and set aside.

Wash and clean chicken, add the ginger garlic paste, turmeric and salt and set aside for at least 20 minutes. In a pan add 2 tsp of oil, and add the chicken. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Uncover and cook until all the water evaporates. Add the ground masala powder along with salt and fry for 5 minutes.

In a separate pan, heat oil and fry the bell peppers, curry leaves and green chillies and add to the chicken along with the oil. Mix in well. Now, add the sauces and mix well. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes more. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot.