Spicy and Tangy Chicken Kheema Masala.

"Spicy and Tangy Chicken Kheema Masala" .... A delicious chicken semi dry curry prepared with finely minced chicken meat that tastes awesome when served with roti/paratha/naan or even our very own panpolo (neer dosa) .... Yummilicious ....

** Chicken kheema curry is a dish I rarely prepare as somehow I always forget to purchase the minced meeat. I grew up eating more of chicken curry and had never tasted dishes with minced meat of the same till I got married and my hubby urged me to do the same. Those days we had depend largely on cookery books or friends for a good recipe and visuals were somewhat something that I hardly came across except in restaurants. Though I come from a family of Non-Veg eaters, in my parents home it was more of fish curries or fries than chicken or mutton. Many a times my father brought home curry from hotels and we relished the same when we went out for dinner. Luckily for me I got married into a family that was also Non.Vegetarian unlike some of my siblings who had to forgo the same after marriage. Again, the same got curtailed to cooking at home as none of the relatives were eating the same and being new in Mumbai, I had no friends.

** I already had a huge collection of cookery books and cuttings collected before marriage, which fell to use after my marriage. I tried a lot of dishes in the first year of my marriage as I had lots of free time and also both the Veg. and Non.Veg markets were just a stone throw away. After that I ventured into business and my preparation of new dishes got curtailed and I stuck to tried and tested ones as I lacked the time to go through the books. But once a fortnight I did make it a point to do something new and mark the same if it turned out good. Kheema was tried a few times, that's it, I had done cutlets which was liked by my family which is yet to be prepared and blogged, but curries were something not preferred much except for this spicy one, so I stuck to this recipe and prepared this one religiously at least once in 6 months. Again panpolo / neer dosa is a thin laced dosa that is a great combo with non-veg dishes down southern parts of India and my hubby always loved it, so I serve this one with it though it goes well with roti/paratha/naan or mildly spiced rice like jeera or ghee rice too.

** Here is my Recipe of  "Spicy and Tangy Chicken Kheema Masala" .... My Style ....

** Wash in plenty of water and drain of the excess water from 500 gms of chicken kheema. Keep this ready aside. 

** Note : Always make it a point to purchase kheema that is freshly minced and readily sold rather than buying tinned one's which contain preservatives.

** Chop about 20-25 cloves of garlic, skin peeled and chopped finely. Also peel of the skin and chop 2 large sized onions finely and 3-4 tomatoes also finely chopped ready aside separately. All the three ingredients should be chopped very finely for easier preparation of cooking. 

** Heat abou ½ cup of oil in a thick bottomed kadai, when hot lower the heat and add in the finely chopped garlic and fry till little bit of color changes. Immediately add in the chopped onions and fry both together till they turn brown in color. Now add in 8-10 fresh curry leaves and continue to fry. 

** Lower the heat and add in the following masalas one by one …. ½ tsp haldi (turmeric) powder, 3-4 tblsp Kashmiri (non spicy) red chilly powder, 1 tsp fennel (badisep/saunf) powder, 1 tsp of jeera (cumin) powder, a large pinch of garam masala or goda masala powder and 2 tsp of coriander (kothimbir/dhania) powder. Fry well for a few minutes. Sprinkle some water if necessary, if you find the masala powders getting burnt.

** Finally add in the finely chopped tomatoes and mix well. Add two cups of water and bring to a boil on medium heat. Once it comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes or till the tomatoes are slightly cooked and have turned mushy. 

** Now add in the chicken kheema, salt to taste and mix well. Once again, bring all to a boil on medium flame, stirring often to avoid getting burnt and then lower the heat to minimum and cook till the chicken kheema is cooked well. Add in more water if necessary. Let the curry simmer well for a good 10-15 minutes.

** Do keep mixing in between frequently so that the masala, tomatoes and chicken gets well bonded together. Lastly add in a lemon sized ball of fresh butter and mix well. You can also garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves, I did not have them at home so I left it out. 

** "Spicy and Tangy Chicken Kheema Masala" is done and ready to be served. Serve this dish hot with panpole, roti, pulav or any other accompaniment of your choice.  Goes well with Idly also. Try it and enjoy with your family and friends. If you have children at home you can lower the level of spice if need be.

** Note : The curry tastes delicious if allowed to rest for 4-6 hours. So if not in a hurry prepare it before hand and allow to rest and then reheat while serving. Resting allows the chicken kheema to absorb the masala within well and makes it that much more tastier.

** Note : Always purchase freshly minced chicken kheema from your vendor and plz. do not go in for stale ones. Also I always prefer them to tinned ones as they contain preservatives which are not healthy at all.

** Note : I have used goda masala instead of garam masala, you can use either, but if goda masala which is a Maharashtrian masala is available to you, do check it out as it gives non-veg dishes an extra flavor when added on. I purchased them from stores.

** Please do check out my Blog for various dishes using the label or search option and if any difficulty please do add in a comment or send me a mail and I will be glad to help and please do mention the name of the dish if at all you choose to mail.