Chicken mastani is a traditional south Indian chicken gravy, a delicious side dish to accompany it with Indian bread or can be served as a side dish for biryani or with steamed rice. It is a coconut based curry with freshly grounded aromatic spices which makes a perfect and tasty south Indian curry. Do try and enjoy as a side dish with rice or roti’s.

Preparation time – 20 min

Cooking time – 25 min

Serves – 4

Ingredients –

Chicken – 1 kg cut into medium pieces

To grind –

Paste – 1

Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbs

Paste – 2

Onion – 1 medium chopped roughly

Pepper – 1/2 tsp

Dry roasted methi seeds – 1 tsp

Clove – 4 no’s

Cinnamon – 1 or 2 small sticks

Garam masala powder – 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Chilly powder – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Paste – 3

Coconut – 1/2 cup

Cashew nut – 6 no’s

Poppy seeds – 1/2 tsp

For seasoning –

Onion – 1 medium sized chopped

Green chilly – 1 or 2 no’s

Coriander leaves – 1/2 cup chopped

Oil to fry

Salt to taste

Method –

To make or to prepare South Indian Chicken Mastani –

Rinse chicken pieces in water for 2 to 3 times, drain the water in it and keep ready, dry roast methi seeds to golden brown in colour, grind all paste one by one and set aside to start.

Heat a pan by adding oil in it, when it is hot add chopped onion fry until it turns to translucent, add ginger garlic paste, green chilies, saute until you get a fresh aroma. Add drained chicken pieces and fry until water in the chicken gets evaporates fully from it, Add salt to taste.

Add paste -2 , combine with the chicken properly. Cook it until the chicken is done, close the lid and cook in a medium low flame, add 1/2 cup of water to cook chicken.

Ensure chicken is done, then add paste – 3 and cook for 5-6 min

Combine it with the chicken mixture, bring it to a gravy curry (thick in consistency)

When the curry reached to a thick in consistency, remove it from the flame, add chopped coriander mix with the curry.

Enjoy traditional south Indian chicken Mastani as a side dish for any Indian bread or with rice or serve as a side dish for biryani.

Notes –

Methi seeds is dry roasted to golden brown and added to grind, which is the key ingredient to the curry, it has a nice aroma which gives a tangy taste to the curry, adding methi seeds to the chicken curry to reduce excess heat in the body.