Kerala Chicken Stew

A pale spicy stew from South India

• CuisineIndian
• CategoryChicken
• CourseMains

Ingredients

• 1.8 kgFull chicken
• 1 tspPeppercorns
• 8Green cardamom
• 10Cloves
• 1 pieceCinnamon
• 1Star anise
• 1 kgOnions, sliced
• 80 gmsGinger, minced
• 6Green chillies, sliced
• 1 tbspPlain flour
• 1 kgPotatoes, cut into fingers
• 2 x 400 mlCoconut milk
• 12Curry leaves
• Salt
• Oil

Preparation

1. Cut chicken into medium sized pieces
2. Heat oil and add peppercorns, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, star anise
3. Once the spices crackle, add onion (retain a handful), ginger, chillies
4. Add flour and stir for a few minutes
5. Add chicken, one can of coconut milk and water measured in the same can
6. Let it boil and then set it to simmer for 15 minutes
7. Add potatoes, salt and lemon juice
8. Simmer till potatoes are cooked
9. Add the second can of coconut milk and heat gently for 5 minutes and take off heat
10. In a small pan, heat some oil
11. Add remaining onions and fry till brown
12. Add curry leaves
13. Add the mixture to the stew

Many years ago, a local Indian restaurant had some South Indian dishes instead of the usual tandoori stuff. Among the usual dosas and idlis was an unusual dish, my favourite, Beef Ishtew (yes, that was how it was spelt), served with string hoppers. It had the spicy taste but was deceptively pale in colour. The restaurant changed hands and this dish disappeared from the menu. This recipe is a chicken version and the recipe came from Madhur Jaffrey's book A Taste of India.

Unlike most dishes, especially from the south of India, this recipe has no dried red chillies or red chilli powder. Instead, the peppercorns and green chillies provide all the heat. This means that the stew has an unusually pale appearance. But the heat is still there, especially if you are generous with these two ingredients. When frying the onions in the first part, don't let them darken - heat till they are just transparent. This maintains the characteristic white colour of the stew. The onions in the second part, the tadka, can be quite brown but it won't affect the colour. When using fresh coconut milk, the first batch is thicker and the second batch is extracted with the help of some water. This second batch is used first, hence the extra canful of water.