Chettinad Chicken Curry Recipe Step by Step

Chettinad chicken curry is the bomb dot com. Enough said. Learn how to make a ridiculously delicious Chettinad chicken curry – or maybe I should say Chettinad-inspired chicken curry – since I am not sure how authentic this recipe truly is but if you love your chicken curry, make this NOW.

It’s not a secret that I love Chettinad chicken recipes and had great success trying out a few, especially this Chettinad chicken masala and a Chettinad pepper chicken recipe. But those two recipes are more on the “dry” side and if you like Chettinad food, a chicken curry recipe has to be part of your cooking arsenal.

Chettinad recipes are usually:

Spicy
Fiery
Fragrant
Flavourful
Meat-based
Delicious!

This chicken curry definitely checks all of the above. Get chicken pieces with bones for best results. We used some leftover chicken wings to cook it up and weren’t disappointed.

Serve this with cumin rice or rotis.

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Chettinad Chicken Curry Recipe

★★★★★
5 from 2 reviews

Author: nags
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 35 mins
Yield: 4
Category: Chicken
Cuisine: Indian

Description

A spicy and delicious chicken curry recipe made Chettinad-style. Chettinad chicken curry tastes best with a simple pulao or roti.

Ingredients

300 grams chicken pieces with bone
2 tbsp curd / plain yogurt
A few curry leaves
1–2 tbgp ghee or oil
1 cup sliced onions
1 green chilli, chopped (optional)
1 cup tomato, cubed
2 tsp crushed kasuri methi / dried methi leaves (optional)
1 tbsp cream

For masala paste

1–2 tsp chilli powder
2 flakes of garlic
2 dry red chillies
A few cashew nuts
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
A small piece of cinammon
2 cloves
1 star anise
Seeds from 2 cardamom pods

Instructions

Wash and clean the chicken pieces and set aside
In a wide pan, dry roast the ingredients for masala paste until the chilli powder gets roasted and the mixture turns aromatic
Cool and grind to a smooth paste with enough water and salt
Add the ground spice paste along with the yogurt and curry leaves to the chicken pieces
Mix thoroughly and set aside
In the same pan, heat ghee or oil and add the sliced onions and green chillies (if using)
Fry the onions until golden brown and add the tomatoes
Give it a good mix and add the marinated chicken pieces
Mix well and add 1 cup water
Cook covered for 7-10 minutes or until the chicken pieces are cooked through
Add crushed kasuri methi on top (if using). You can also use fresh chopped coriander leaves instead
Drizzle cream on top. This is also optional but really enhances the taste of the curry. Adjust salt as needed
Serve hot with cumin rice or roti

Notes

Adjust the spice levels to your taste. This recipe makes a fairly spicy Chettinad chicken curry
You can grind the onions and tomatoes once roasted and then proceed with the rest of the recipe. This gives a creamier gravy
You can also omit tomatoes and add 1 tsp tamarind paste or 1/4 cup tamarind water to the chicken when cooking
The kasuri methi is optional and not typically used in Chettinad recipes. Omit or use as you wish