mackerel in dry gravy (बांगड्याच सुकं) –

 

Mackerels (Bangada) – 4 to 5 small size

Turmeric – ½ T-spoon

Oil for cooking

Salt taste

To grind into paste –

Dry red chilies – 7-8 or as per your taste

Coriander seeds – 1 t-spoon

Freshly grated coconut – 1 bowl

Chopped green coriander leaves – ½ bowl

Garlic pods – 5 to 6

Procedure –

1. Clean the mackerels and marinate with turmeric and salt and keep aside for 15-20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile grind into smooth paste all the ingredients given in list adding little water if needed.
3. Spread the paste on mackerels with light hand.
4. Add oil in a flat frying pan and keep the mackerels one by one. Spread remaining paste on top of fish.
5. Cover the pan and cook the fish for 10 to 15 minutes until its done. If feels too dry add little water but don't make it gravy.
6. Eat hot with white rice/jowar bhakari.

Maharashtrian Chicken curry –

Ingredients –

Chicken ½ kg/ approx. 1 pound

Onions – 3 medium, sliced

Tomato -2 medium, finely chopped

Garlic cloves – 5-6

Ginger – ½“

Red chili powder – 1 t-spoon

Turmeric powder – 1/4^th t-spoon

Green chilies – 1-2

Oil – 3 tb-spoons

Salt to taste

Chopped coriander leaves

Masala to be grind –

Dry grated coconut – 1/4^th bowl

Red chilies – 3

Coriander seeds – 1 t-spoon

Cumin seeds – ½ t-spoon

Cinnamon stick - 1

Cloves – 2-3

Black cardamom – 1

Funnel seeds (saunf) – ½ t-spoon

Poppy seeds – 1 t-spoon

Dagadphool – 2 (optional use if you have it in your pantry)

Procedure –

1. Heat 2 tb-spoons of oil in a pan. Add cloves, black cardamom, poppy seeds, funnel seeds, coriander and cumin seeds and cinnamon and sauté till the spices leave nice aroma. Take out and keep aside.

2. Add red chilies and grated coconut in the same pan and roast for a while. Take out and keep aside.

3. Add sliced onions into the pan and sauté till they become brown. Mix onions with remaining masala mixture and add ginger, garlic and green chili and grind into fine paste.

4. Heat remaining oil in a pan. Add masala paste and sauté for 2 minutes. Then add chicken pieces and sauté for 5 minutes.

5. Add chopped tomato, red chili powder, two bowls of water and salt to taste. Let the gravy boil for 2 minutes. Then reduce the heat to medium, cover the pan with lid and cook chicken for 15-20 minutes.

6. Add chopped coriander and serve hot with roti, Jwarichi Bhakri or plain rice along with lemon/lime pieces and sliced onion.

Kolhapuri Chicken

Chicken – 1 kg./2 Pounds approximately

Curd – 1 bowl

Turmeric powder – 1/4^th Tsp.

Ginger-garlic paste – 1 tb.sp.

Kolhapuri  kanda-lasun masala – 1tbsp or as per your taste

Red chili powder -  1 Tbsp (use byadagi mirchi powder or Kashmiri red chili powder for this recipe to have that wonderful  red color)

Onions – 2 sliced

Dry grated coconut – 1 bowl

Tomato - finely chopped, ½ bowl

Coriander seeds powder – 1 tb.sp.

Cumin seeds powder – ½ tb.sp.

Coconut milk – 1 bowl

Handful of coriander leaves – finely chopped

Lemon/lime juice – 1 tb.sp.

Oil – 3 tb.sp.

Salt to taste

Procedure –

1. Marinate the chicken for atleast half an hour with turmeric powder, ginger-garlic paste, kanda Lasun masala, red chili powder and curd.

2. Heat 2 tb.sp. oil in a pan and fry sliced onions will light brown. Keep them aside.

3. Roast grated coconut in the leftover oil and keep it aside.

4. Grind onion and coconut into fine paste in a mixer grinder.

5. Heat 1 tb.sp. oil in a pan and add onion and coconut paste. Sauté till it leaves oil.

6. Add chopped tomato and sauté till they become mushy and leave oil.

7. Add marinated chicken, salt, half of the chopped coriander, coriander and cumin seeds powder and sauté for 5 minutes.

8. Add 4 cups of water and let the water boil on a high flame.

9. Reduce the heat to medium, cover the pan with lid and cook chicken for at least 20 minutes.

10. Adjust the salt and red chili powder as per your taste.

11. Add thick coconut milk and some water as per your consistency and let the chicken boil for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat, add remaining chopped coriander leaves and lemon/lime juice.

12. Serve hot with ‘jwarichi bhakari’ (Jowar roti), bread or white rice.

Note :

 Actually Kolhapuri chicken is more spicy and hot. Kolhapuri people use oil and masala generously. This recipe is medium spicy. You can add more kanda-lasun masala and oil as per your taste. ‘Vanaspati ghee’ tastes fabulous in this chicken, though I have used oil here.

Malvani green chicken

Ingredients –

Chicken cut into medium pieces – 1 kg.

Salt to taste

Ginger-garlic paste  - 1½ tb-sp

Pinch of turmeric powder

Lemon/lime juice - 1 tb-sp

Coconut, scraped – 3/4^th cup

Oil – 4 tb-sp

Cinnamon – 1 inch stick

Black cardamoms – 2

Green cadamoms – 3

Bay leaf – 1-2

Cloves – 3-4

Cumin seeds – ½ t-sp

Onions finely chopped – 3 medium

Garam masala powder – 1 t-sp

Fresh coriander leaves – 1 tb-sp

For green masala –

Fresh coriander leaves – small bunch

Coconut – ½ cup

Ginger roughly chopped – 1 inch

Green chilies, roughly chopped - 5

Procedure –

1. Apply salt and ginger-garlic paste to the chicken pieces and set aside for half an hour.

2. Grind 3/4^th cup of coconut with quarter cup of warm water and extract thick milk.

3. Grind together all ingredients of green masala to a fine paste.

4. Heat oil in a pan. Add cinnamon, black cardamom, green cardamom, bay leaf, cloves,     cumin seeds and sauté till fragrant.

5. Add onions and cook until soft and translucent.

6. Add ground green masala paste and sauté on low flame for 3-4 minutes, until masala leaves the oil.

7. Add chicken pieces and mix well. Continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes.

8. Add half cup of water, adjust salt and cook until chicken is done.

9. Add coconut milk and garam masala powder.

10. Mix well and let it boil.

11. Turn off the gas and garnish with coriander leaves.

Note :

Care has to be taken that chicken should be well cooked before adding coconut milk.

You can skip coconut milk if you want. But coconut is a eseential component while cooking konkani food.