Sri Lankan jaffna curry powder-chicken curry.
Sri Lankan Jaffna curry powder spicy chicken curry.You’ve made your Jaffna curry powder, now let’s make a spicy chicken curry worthy of the curry powder. Be prepared to sweat, enjoy and savor this delicious chicken curry recipe that is everything you look forward to in Sri Lankan cuisine.
- Prep time
- 15 min
- Cook time
- 40 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- Ingredients mentioned below use standard measuring cups and spoons.
- 1 whole chicken, washed, cleaned and cut into required size( 700g- 1kg)
- 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
- 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of fresh pepper powder
- 3 tablespoons of Jaffna curry powder(you can add 1 more tablespoon if you can handle the heat)
- Salt to season
- 2 tablespoons of tamarind soaked in 1/4 of a cup of water(if using tamarind paste,1 tablespoon should do)
- 3 tablespoons of oil
- A sprig of curry leaves(substitute with 1 bay leaf)
- A long piece of Pandan leaf
- 2 tablespoons of ginger-garlic paste
- 1 large onion finely sliced
- 1 medium-sized chopped Tomato
- 3 whole green chillies split in the middle
- 1 piece of Cinnamon (1inch)
- 4 slightly bruised Cardamoms
Instructions
- 1
If you’ve never cut a chicken before, use this post on how to cut a whole chicken as a reference.
- 2
Add the cleaned and washed chicken parts to a bowl. Make sure to drain any excess water.
- 3
Add the turmeric powder(1 teaspoon), Jaffna curry powder(3 tablespoon, add 1 more tablespoon if you can handle the heat), pepper powder(1 and 1/2 tablespoon), salt to season, and tamarind juice(2 tablespoons tamarind soaked in 1/4 of a cup of water, if using tamarind paste,1 tablespoon should do) to the chicken parts.
- 4
Combine, cover, and set aside for 15-20 minutes(as long as you can).
- 5
Cover and refrigerate if you are marinating the chicken parts for more than 30 minutes.
- 6
Place a wok or a pan large enough to hold chicken parts and gravy, and let it heat over medium fire for a few seconds.
- 7
Pour in the oil(3 tablespoons), then in the given order, add curry leaves(a sprig, substitute with 1 bay leaf), pandan leaf, onions(1 large onion sliced fine), tomatoes(1 medium), cinnamon(1″ piece), ginger-garlic paste(2 tablespoons), cardamom(4), green chilies(3).
- 8
Sauté the ingredients over medium heat(less than 5 minutes)or until they release their aroma.
- 9
As the ingredients sauté, take out the marinating chicken pieces and gradually add them to the pan with tempering ingredients.
- 10
Do not throw away whatever marinade liquid is left; we will be adding it to the curry later.
- 11
Combine and let the chicken semi-fry with the tempering ingredients in the pan over medium heat for at least 7-10 minutes.
- 12
Try to brown the chicken as much as you can while avoiding the chicken sticking to the pan. For this purpose, you can add a tablespoon of oil. for 10-15 minutes.
- 13
Once the chicken turns slightly golden at the edges, pour the leftover marinade into the pan.
- 14
Then, add one and a half cups of water(depending on how much gravy you need, you can reduce it to one cup).
- 15
(If you prefer to add coconut milk and give it a creamier flavour, instead of adding water as instructed above, add a cup of coconut milk and continue with the instructions given below.)
- 16
Cover and slowly simmer the curry for 45 minutes.
- 17
20 minutes into slow-simmering, check for taste, and season with salt if necessary.
- 18
Avoid increasing heat to cook the chicken faster, maintain low-medium heat, and slow-cook until the gravy reaches your desired consistency.