Pepper Chicken

Just like many other popular Indian chicken recipes, this Pepper Chicken holds a separate, permanent place among the non-vegetarian people.

This Tamilnadu-style pepper chicken is popular for its rich aroma and the spice it delivers to its fans, making it a perfect recipe during monsoon time and in winters. Though, it can be had at anytime of the year.

The recipe I have used, doesn’t have any extra spice like garam masala. We are going to use freshly roasted and grinded masalas which increases the aroma and the taste to this dish.

I will assure you something here!! When you are cooking this in your kitchen, definitely the people staying along with you are going to peep into the kitchen many times.

I have used boneless chicken for this recipe. The thigh portion of chicken tastes good. Chicken with bones can be used. I will give the separate instruction for the chicken with bones in quotes.

This is a dry pepper chicken recipe and it goes well as a side dish with rice or chapati.

Let’s check the recipe for this mouth-watering, aromatic, spicy pepper chicken.

This is my 50th written recipe🍗🐓

INGREDIENTS

  • Boneless chicken- 500 gms
  • Small onions- 10 to 12 shallots
  • Big onions- 2 medium sized ( chopped finely)
  • Ginger garlic paste- 1 and a half tsp
  • Red chilli- 2
  • Fenugreek seeds- 1 tsp
  • Pepper seeds- 1 tsp
  • Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
  • Turmeric powder- 1/4th tsp
  • Fenugreek seeds- 1/4th tsp
  • Curry leaves- 15 to 20
  • Bay leaf- 1
  • Cinnamon- 1 inch
  • Cloves- 3
  • Coriander leaves- little
  • Salt- as needed.
  • Pepper powder- 1 tsp ( optional)

PROCEDURE

Clean the chicken well and cut it into pieces as shown in the above picture.

Take a pan and dry roast red chillies, pepper seeds, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds in low flame for 3 minutes. You should get the rich aroma from the spices. Cook in low flame and don’t burn them.
Cool it for sometime.
Grind them into a fine powder in a mixer and keep the ‘grinded masala’ separate.
Heat 2 tbsp of sesame oil in a pan and saute bay leaves, cinnamon, cloves, 1/4th tsp of fenugreek seeds in a medium flame.
Once you could smell the aroma, add the onions and saute it for a minute.
Once the onions are translucent, add the curry leaves and saute again.
Add salt now and saute for a minute. The process is in medium flame.
Add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell of the ginger garlic goes away.
Once the raw smell goes away, add turmeric powder and saute for a minute.
Add the chicken pieces now.
Mix it with onions.
Add little water enough for cooking as chicken leaves water. Check the salt needed.
Close it with a lid and cook for 5 to 7 minutes in medium flame. “If using chicken with bones cook it for 15 to 20 minutes covering the top with lid”. Open and check now and then.
Once opened. Chicken should be cooked completely.
Add the ‘grinded masala’ now and cook everything for 3 to 5 minutes.
If you want it to be more spicy, add 1 tsp of pepper powder ( optional) now and stir it together. Cook for 1 more minute.
Finely add little curry leaves and coriander leaves. Mix it together. Switch off the flame.
Ready to serve.

TIPS

  • The spice can be increased or decreased by the usage of red chilli.
  • If you want to add little water, add 1 or 2 tbsp of water when adding garam masala. But this a dry version of pepper chicken.
  • Use sesame oil for better taste.
  • This tastes best with rice and rasam, rice and dal, rice and sambar or with chapati .