Payyoli Kozhi Curry | Chicken Curry

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Can you believe Ramadan is right there at the corner? Sometimes it feels it came way too fast, but I can’t help it but say that it has come at a time when it is needed. I feel like I have a terribly parched soul, just struggling to get in terms with everything that is happening. For surely, this month comes like a relief at the right time. For me, Ramadan is like a breath of fresh air. A change in routine, a more balanced life, a peaceful thought process, a new hope… It literally recharges all the dying batteries within you.

I am sure that feeling comes because the devils are chained during this precious month. There is no one but ourselves to beat when they are off our head. It takes some time to realize that there is a lot of inbuilt evil within ourselves, when there is no third voice inside our head. I don’t know if you have noticed but it is true. Man has an inherent evil part in him, in fact everybody has. It is upto our will and hard work where we do good and control the evil without giving to it. It needs Allah’s command as well. No wonder we are always urged to do good and invoke the Almighty for His help for the same… May Allah bless us with this wonderful month and make us do the best as per our abilities, to His Pleasure… Aameen ya Rubb….

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HD always compares my cooking to how umma or his aunt cooks. I can’t blame him for that. They have seasoned hands, and I don’t. I feel lazy to cook the same dish over and over again unless and until it is loved in the family. I think I have hit the right chord with him, when I made this fish curry. Then the next brownie point came with this chicken curry.

I called it “Payyoli Chicken Curry” because this is how I have seen the women there make their curry. HD is from this place, which has got its name famous thanks to PT Usha. We had hosted two families in our house when they had come on visit. Both of them used to make their chicken curry exactly this way. The only difference is that I would use the spices in my kitchen, while back home and both of them had used chicken masala powder. The powder is what makes this curry very easy to make. But being averse to store-bought packs, I prefer using all the spice powders mentioned on the pack, rather! 😉

Apart from the little nuances of the steps, the other major difference between the curry umma makes and this is the use of fenugreek seeds. We use this only in beef or fish curry, but never in chicken curry. So it was quite a surprise when they told me that it is an essential part of the curry. After all, that is one thing with curries – there is no dearth to various combinations and permutations, as long as the flavors are bang on! 🙂 Off the recipe…

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Payyoli Kozhi Curry | Chicken Curry

Course Main

Cuisine Malabar

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Rafeeda

Ingredients

• 600 gm chicken cleaned and drained (I used four thigh and leg)
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 3/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 2 meduim onions thinly sliced
• 2 green chillies slit
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 to matoes chopped
• 2 heaped tsp coriander powder
• 3/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp fennel powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 3/4 tsp garam masala powder
• Salt to taste.
• 1 sprig curry leaves

Instructions

• Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Sizzle the fenugreek seeds.
• Add the onions and saute till wilted.
• Add in the chicken and toss. Cook for five minutes
• Add the green chillies, ginger garlic paste and tomatoes and toss well. Cook for a couple of minutes.
• Mix all the powders with a little water to make a paste. Add into the chicken and toss well to coat. Add a little water for the curry and salt.
• Close the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for one whistle on high and 5 minutes on low. Switch off and allow the pressure to go by itself.
• Open and give a good mix. Adjust seasoning. Add in the curry leaves and serve hot.

Notes

You may replace the spice powders (from coriander to garam masala powder) with 2 heaped tbsp chicken curry masala powder.