South Indian Spicy Chicken Fry

Chicken is the first meat I have eaten as a child. I bet every vegetarian turned non-vegetarian out there claims the same. I like everything about chicken-from succulent chicken legs to the healthy all time protein provider, the breast. I generally incline towards spicy, sizzling and crazy hot versions of it, thanks to my super spice tolerance taste buds. However, I am aware that there are many people out there who would enjoy the strong and vibrant flavour that goes into a classic South Indian spicy chicken fry recipe.

There could be many variations to this dish based on different regions in India. I have tasted many varieties of chicken fry among our extended families, friends and restaurants. After enjoying this dish for years in different forms….my love for chicken lead me to this mouth-watering and super addictive hot but simple chicken fry. I have tried my share of experimenting and I will be sharing my final touch to this simple but oozing with flavour South Indian spicy chicken fry.

Once you have the ginger garlic paste handy, its super easy to prepare. I always have it ready in my refrigerator….it’s a must in my kitchen. I’m sure you don’t have it, so grab all the ingredients required and make the paste. Or why don’t you try my version of Ginger garlic paste?

Let us move on to the process in making this Simple chicken fry.

Marinate the chicken with ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, turmeric and salt. Leave it for 20 minutes.See the recipe card at the end of this post for measurements. The longer you marinate, the better the spices blend into the chicken. I’m in a hurry, so I’m just leaving it for 20 minutes. You can marinate directly in the pan in which you are going to boil the chicken.

Heat the pan with the marinated chicken over medium heat and cook till soft and tender, if required you can sprinkle some water while cooking if the chicken doesn’t release enough moisture.Cook chicken till all the water evaporates. This takes about 10 minutes.

Heat oil in another large nonstick pan over medium heat. Add onions, sauté for a minute. Now transfer the above chicken mixture and mix well, add curry leaves and adjust salt if needed and continue to fry.

Roast for about 10 to 15 minutes till the chicken is coated well with all the spices and gets a nice golden brown texture. I can already feel the taste and aroma…yummy. Its time to add the garam masala, crushed pepper and green chilies, stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes and turn off the heat.

Garnish with coriander and serve hot. It is a perfect go with Coconut milk rice and Onion Raitha or withRasam over steamed rice or Rotis or Parathas.

South Indian Spicy Chicken Fry

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Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

50 mins

Step by step process of a Simple but flavourful South Indian spicy chicken fry with a tinge of ginger, garlic & chilli which is a great treat for....

posted by: Padma

Recipe type: Dinner side dish

Cuisine: Indian

Serves: 4 to 5

Ingredients

• To marinate
• 1 kg Chicken skinned, cut into medium sized pieces
• 2 Tablespoons ginger garlic paste
• 3 teaspoons Red chilli powder
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• Salt as required
• Other ingredients
• 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 large onions sliced lengthwise
• Few curry leaves
• ½ teaspoon garam masala
• ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
• 3 green chilies slit lengthwise
• 2 Tablespoons finely chopped coriander

Directions

1. Marinate chicken with ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, turmeric and salt for 20 minutes in a medium sized pan,
2. Cook marinated chicken over medium heat till soft and tender, if needed you can add very little water while cooking if the chicken doesn’t release enough moisture. Let the water in the chicken evaporate. This takes about 10 minutes.
3. Heat oil in another large nonstick pan over medium heat. Add onions, sauté for a minute and transfer the above chicken mixture, add curry leaves and adjust salt if needed and fry.
4. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes till the chicken turns golden brown in colour and coated with all the spices. Now add garam masala, crushed pepper and green chilies, stir for 2 to 3 minutes and turn off the heat.
5. Garnish with coriander and serve with rotis, rasam over steamed rice or my all time favourite withcoconut milk rice and onion raitha.

My Notes

Marinate chicken before you start the rest of the process.
The longer you marinate, the spices blend better into the chicken.
Make sure water is almost evaporated while boiling the marinated chicken.
Spice levels can be adjusted with red chilli powder.
Roast it an extra 3 to 5 minutes at the end to get a nice crispy texture, but don’t burn it.