Hara Bara Chicken/Green Masala Chicken

Bangalore is simply beautiful now with fresh rains and cool weather and we are enjoying it thoroughly.

I got this recipe from a cookery show I watched the other day and decided to try it because it was different from the normal chicken curry prepared in coconut milk or any creamy gravy with loads of spices. The chef said she always bagged first place in cooking competitions for this particular dish! And so I thought, why not give it a shot!

And I did! And what came out was definitely a good good dish. Very refreshing, light, easy to cook and yummy. The freshness of the coriander is the highlight of this dish. And as is the nature of chicken, it absorbs all the flavour and makes it succulent. The simple aromatics and hot green chillies have done a fantastic job in taking this simple dish to a new level.

This chicken dish can be made in a jiffy. An ideal preparation to make when you are in a hurry. And if you follow the recipe to the T, you will have a very tasty Hara Bara Chicken!

I thought it was perfect for the weather yesterday and a couple of rotis with this dish was icing on the cake!

Ingredients

Chicken - 1/2 kg

Big Onion (finely sliced)- 2 (medium)

Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Oil

For Masala Paste

Coriander leaves - 1 bunch

Green Chilli - 3 to 4 (adjust as per spice tolerance)

Ginger - 1 big piece

Garlic - 8 cloves

Pepper corns - 1 tsp

Method

Wash and clean the chicken and cut into medium size pieces. Keep aside.

Grind all the ingredients listed under "For Masala Paste" into a coarse paste and keep aside.

Heat oil in a wok and add sliced onions into it. Saut'e onions till very soft and has reduced. (fry it till you observe a tinge of brown here and there) Once the onions are done, add turmeric powder, salt and chicken and saut'e for 5 minutes till the pink colour of the chicken disappears. Cover and cook on a low flame till the chicken is tender. (do not add any water, let it cook in it's own juices) Stir in between. Now add the ground masala paste and stir till all the masala coats the chicken well and is almost dry. Serve hot with rotis. Enjoy!

Notes: If you find the dish too spicy, reduce the number of green chillies. The original recipe calls for 8 chillies, but I have reduced it to 3 to 4.

Make sure the masala is not ground to a very smooth paste. It should be coarsely ground, that adds to the flavour.

This dish has gravy that is quite dry as you can see in the pictures. It tastes better like that. But make sure it stays moist and doesn't dry out completely.