My Hariyali Wali Chicken

We procure eight fifty grams of curry chicken pieces. I usually buy them from an Indian store nearby famous for its curry pieces and chicken drumsticks. They are fresh and I like to cook it that very day for the skin is peeled out and nicely cleaned chicken makes me want to tip it in oil and turn it around into a curry as soon as I can.

Now we make a spice mix which means a long stick of cinnamon, six to seven green cardamoms, four or five cloves and powder them all finely and leave it aside. We also make a rough paste of six to seven cloves of garlic, half an inch of ginger, quarter of a big onion, two or three small sized tomatoes which are in season now when I look around in the aisles in Safeway. I wanted my mortar and pestle to come to good use so pounded onions, tomatoes, ginger and garlic to give it a more earthy feel instead of blending it all together finely. We also make a paste of fresh coriander leaves though I make this in a blender in contrast to the earlier method as I want the coriander paste a little more towards the runnier side usually as prepared in most Bengalis' homes. Make sure not to leave out the twigs for the extra flavor rushes out of these when crushed, pounded or blended. We also crush some fresh green chilies in the mortar and pestle to add little extra heat and one can totally skip this for chilies are not liked by all.

Now i marinate the chicken curry pieces with the same paste that was roughly made details of which already mentioned. Only thing is I add a dash of white vinegar. some salt and a little mustard oil to the marinade and the coriander paste is not to be included here careful of that fact as that will get added in the latter part of the curry once all comes to a rolling boil. I leave the marinated chicken in the fridge close to ten minutes.

Now take a heavy bottomed pan and add oil, warm it very well. I use the good old mustard oil for most of my Indian cooking and here again it is used for this dish as well. Tip in the spice mixture, ingredients of which is given in the beginning and let them all be evenly cooked until aroma emanates. Now is the time to add all the marinated chicken pieces and fry well until it leaves oil from the sides. Let it cook away for six to seven minutes additionally. Now again, we tip in the paste of coriander, chilies let it get coated in the spices and oil. Blend them all well and cook through evenly until tender and juicy. All this takes a prolonged fifteen minutes. Once done, add one fourth of a small cup of boiling water and salt for taste. Let all these ingredients come together after a rolling boil or two and leave it on for about few more minutes before switching off the flame. Check for consistency and color and serve hot with nicely done white rice and you are good to go. A chicken curry done right and enjoy it's meaty flavors with anything on the side.