Ani's Kitchen Stories

Baked Chicken Curry, an easy, delectable dish that can be made without standing for hours in the kitchen. Yes, your oven will do the work and without doubt the most delicious and flavourful chicken dish you’ll have.

The fried onions on top of the chicken curry adds the oomph to the baked dish. The chicken pieces are juicy and tender and you can even get the hint of chicken tikka texture in it. This easy go to recipe is a definite life saviour during those hot summer days when you don’t feel like working for long hours in the kitchen. It can be a weeknight meal, weekend or even on any busy or lazy days.

Relish it with rice or roti along with salad and mint raita (mint yogurt) for a complete soulful meal.

To get the ultimate flavour and taste, it’s must to marinate the chicken for least 1 or 2 hours. Overnight marination is way better for the juicy goodness. Marination with curd or yogurt helps to make the meat tender and juicy. And giving a good massage to the chicken pieces with the marination mixture makes it extra flavourful. It’s always best to use your hands instead of spatula while coating the chicken with the marinade.

Choose Chicken with bones for the Chicken curry. Chicken thighs or Chicken legs will also work like a charm. The only difference will be the baking time.

Ingredients: (Serves 3-4)

500 gms Chicken pieces with bone

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1 1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder

1/2 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp chicken masala

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1 medium onion grated

1 onion (sliced)

1 1/2 tsp crushed garlic

1 tsp crushed ginger

1 tbsp lime juice

3 tbsp curd/yogurt

2 tbsp mustard oil

15-20 chopped fresh mint leaves

1 tsp crushed peppercorns

Salt to taste

2-3 green chilies

Handful of chopped coriander leaves

Instructions:

Wash the chicken pieces and remove the excess water, pat dry if needed.

In a bowl, add the chicken pieces, gently massage the chicken with mustard oil along with grated onion, ginger, garlic, lime juice, mint, curd, salt and all spices except pepper, green chilies, sliced onion and coriander leaves. Combine and coat the chicken pieces well with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate overnight or an hour.

In the meanwhile, deep fry the onion slices until brown and crispy and keep aside.

Now transfer the marinated chicken pieces in the baking dish and bake it in the oven of 200 degree Celsius for 30 to 40 mins basting once in between with the chicken juices in the pan. In the process add the sliced green chilies and crushed peppers.

When the chicken is tender and juicy, remove from the pan and once again baste with the pan juices. Garnish with the fried onion slices and chopped coriander leaves. Server hot with rice or roti.

Note: The leftover Chicken pieces of the baked chicken curry can also be used for Chicken rolls or Chicken wraps or can be even added in the Indian flavour Chicken fried rice.