Chicken Varuval - a punchy South Indian dish which will make you go in for seconds!
spice up Deepavali season with this rich and spicy dry curry!
we recently came together with our friend, Chef Annil (@annilravin) who runs a catering business specialising in several Indian dishes. as per our recent Deepavali-themed content piece, he shared with us a recipe for a dish which is synonymous to Chettinad cuisine, Chicken Varuval. as South Indian Chettinad food is known for being hot and fiery, this dish really packs a punch and made us come in for seconds!
Chicken Varuval is popular among the South Indian communities of Malaysia and Singapore. we love how Chef Annil incorporates a local twist by finishing up the dish with kecap manis to give it a tinge of sweetness and a deep colour to the dish.
the use of a lacing of LEILA ghee in this recipe adds on a whole dimension of richness which gives tantalising buttery finish.
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Chef Annil’s Chicken Varuval
(serves 5 - 6)
800 grams chicken, bone-in, small pieces
2 tbsp ginger paste
2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp salt
2 tablespoon coconut oil + 1 tbsp LEILA Ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 cinnamon stick (cassia)
5 sprigs curry leaves,
5 pcs dried chilli
2 medium red onions, diced
3 green chillies, sliced
30g ginger, blended into a paste
5 cloves garlic, blended into a paste
2 tbsp dried chilli paste (chilli boh)
2 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tbsp meat curry powder
Salt, to taste
2 cups water
2 tbsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp kecap manis (optional)
1 tbsp LEILA ghee
3 sprigs coriander leaves, chopped
directions:
coat the chicken pieces with turmeric, salt and ginger paste. cover and let it marinade for at least 30 minutes or up to 12 hours in the fridge.
in a wok or pan, heat oil and ghee on medium heat. temper the cumin, fennel, cinnamon, dried chilies and curry leaves until they start crackling.
add the onions and green chillies and sautéed until the onions are translucent. add the ginger, garlic and chilli pastes. stir well and cook until the oil start to separate, ensuring there is no ‘raw’ flavours
fold in in the turmeric, chilli and meat curry powders and sautée for another 5 minutes until fragrant.
add in the marinated chicken and coat the pieces of chicken well with the masala. add in water, black pepper, kecap manis and salt to taste. stir and cover the pan to let the chicken cook. this may take about 15-20 minutes.
remove lid and stir constantly to reduce the curry into a thick sauce. the sauce should be clinging onto the chicken pieces.
turn off flame, dollop on the ghee and sprinkle on coriander leaves. mix well and serve with white rice / ghee rice /pilaf.
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