Chicken Pepper Masala

From the land of spices, comes this simple yet sophisticated Chicken dish that is very easy to prepare and yet a great hit at many parties. This dish has few ingredients and simple cooking methods. To get best results use only fresh whole spices and avoid pre-ground powders, except for turmeric.

Serves 5

Ingredients:

Chicken - 10 medium sized pieces, cleaned and washed with salt and turmeric

Onions - 3 medium size, sliced

Ginger- Garlic paste - 1 tbsp, freshly ground

Cloves- 2 nos.

Cardamom- 2 nos.

Cinnamom - 1/2" piece

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Pepper- 1 tbsp (roasted and coarsely ground)

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp (roasted and coarsely ground)

Oil- 3 tbsp

Turmeric pwd - 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

Water - 1 cup.

Coriander leaves -  finely chopped for garnishing

Lime wedges to serve along.

Method of Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a kadai and put in the cloves, cardamom and cinnamom.

2. When the spices pop, put in the sliced onions and fry till transparent.

3. When onions are transparent, add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes. Add curry leaves and fry for a minute.

4. Put in chicken pieces and freshly ground pepper and coriander. Fry until the chicken turns golden brown on the outside.

5. Add 1 cup of water, salt and turmeric pwd. Cook covered on medium heat for about 20-30 mins till chicken is done.

6. When the chicken is cooked remove from cover and cook uncovered untill the masala is dry.

7. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with lime wedges.

P.S.: If you want to use store bought ginger- garlic paste use only 1 1/2 tsp of it. You will also need to put in lesser amount of salt as the ginger -garlic paste will contain salt in it.