Chicken Ghee Roast

Spring has officially arrived and I cannot tell you how good it feels to cook in a bright sunny kitchen. It's strange how something as simple as sunshine can perk you up and get you charged. While the flowers are just about popping up here and there, we are still waiting for the riot of green and all the color.

I have been motivated sufficiently enough to whip up new dishes for the family. This particular recipe had been bookmarked a long time ago, but I definitely lacked the mojo to prepare it..:D By the time I was done with the photo shoot, I promptly sat down with a chicken piece, the yummylicious dry gravy and some brown bread to go along and it wasn't even lunch time!!!! So there, I hope I have tempted you enough to try this out.

Source: Ruchik Randhap

Ingredients:

• 1 kilogram chicken washed and cut into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 cup ghee/clarified butter
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves and a few curry leaves(I didn't have any)

For the marinade:

• juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 cup thick curds or yoghurt
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• salt to taste

For the masala:

• 15 Kashmiri chillies *
• 8 Bedgi chillies *
• 12 peppercorns
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp jeera or cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 12 garlic flakes with skin
• 1 marble sized tamarind soaked in 2 tbsps water

Method:

1. Marinade the chicken pieces with the ingredients mentioned For the Marinade and refrigerate anywhere between 1 to 4 hours.
2. Heat a tawa a or a non stick pan and dry roast the chillies, peppercorns, coriander, cumin and fenugreek seeds. Using a little water grind this along with the garlic and tamarind paste. 
3. Heat 1/4 cup of ghee in a wide thick bottomed pan, add the marinated chicken pieces and cook over an open flame till the pieces are almost cooked. Transfer the pieces to another vessel and the liquid/gravy to another bowl(I had only half a small bowl of gravy).
4. In the same pan add the remaining ghee and fry the masala for 5-6 minutes or till the oil leaves the sides of the pan.
5. Add the cooked chicken, the reserved gravy and salt to taste(If added in sufficient quantity before, then omit). Cook on a medium high flame till the masala dries up. Add the sugar and mix.
6. Garnish with curry and coriander leaves. Turn off the flame.
7. Serve hot with neer dosa, roti or plain hot rice with some tomato saar as accompaniment!

* To know about the chillies used, click on this link.

* Since I didn't have bedgi chillies, I ended up using the shorter variety. It did turn out spicy, but then I LOVE spice..:D