Wednesday, September 24, 2008

My 'Freshest' Post

Normally, we prefer to have dinner between 8 and 8:30 pm, but after moving to Mumbai, dinner time is delayed 30 minutes further, and we finish eating by 9:00 pm only. Today, I had finished basic preparations for dinner before going out in the evening. There were two raw mangoes in the fridge and 4 potatoes lying unused for more than a week, and I wanted to make use of them. The easiest choice that came to my mind was raw mango chutney with aloo roti**, and plain old simple dal. I added the ingredients for the mango chutney in the mixer, pressure-cooked two cups of dal for 3-4 whistles, got the mashed potato and wheat flour dough ready, and decided to complete the dishes after returning home 'fresh'-in-time for dinner.

We are out. Phone rings. R says, "I am at a chicken shop. Shall I get a Kg?" My memory bell rings. 'Oh no. I had asked him to buy chicken if possible.' I say, "OK."

We are back home at 8 and R, by 8:15 pm, with the chicken. "So late, do you want me to make the chicken now?" My daughter A, who has recently taken to chicken, thanks to her friends, starts chanting, "I want chicken and mammam, I want chicken and mammam*" in a very familiar nursery rhyme tune. "OK. Give me an hour."

I wash the chicken with water and the '5-second lime and salt' way, as explained by Cynthia of Tastes Like Home, and proceed to marinade, stopping midway while peeling ginger with the thought - 'Why not use my raw mango mixture to marinade with curd?' - and grab fresh curd from the fridge. Well, you can read the recipes below, but I ended up making mango chicken and aloo roti** with dal for dinner.

The reason I mentioned time of dinner etc. in the beginning: While the chicken was marinad-ing(?) for 30 minutes, I made the tomato-onion-masala base for the gravy, and aloo roti, and we sat for dinner at 9:30 pm. We finished by about 10:00 pm, and I cleared up and put A to sleep by 11:00pm, and started this post, very 'fresh' from the whole unplanned-but-pleasant mango chicken curry experience. My first chicken dish prepared at home after 15 and odd months!

Mango Chicken Curry

Things you will need:
Chicken pieces - 1 kg in all
For the Mango Marinade Mixture
Raw Mangoes - 2 meidum-sized - peeled and cubed
Curd - 3 tbsp - fresh
Ginger - 2 large - peeled and cubed
Garlic cloves - 3-4 large - peeled and cubed
Green chilly - 1 large - chopped
Red chilly powder - 2 tsp
Jeera Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Methi powder - 1 tsp
Salt - 2 tsp
For the tomato-onion gravy
Tomatoes - 2 large - finely chopped
Onions - 4 large - finely chopped
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Garam Masala powder - 2 tsp
Pepper - 1 tsp OR to taste

Oil - 2 tbsp
Salt - to taste

Method:

  • Grind the mango mixture

  • Add it to the curd and mix well
  • Mix the washed, pat-dried chicken pieces in the mango-curd mixture and leep aside for 30 minutes

  • Grind half the chopped onions and half the chopped tomatoes together into a paste
  • Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and add half the chopped onions, stir well until light brown
  • Add the coriander, garam masala, pepper and salt, and mix well for a few minutes
  • Add the remaining half of the chopped tomatoes, and cook covered for 2-3 minutes
  • Add the tomato-onion paste and bring to boil
  • Add the chicken marinade and mix well

  • Keep covered and leave to cook, occasionally mixing in between
  • After 15-20 minutes adjust the salt and add more chilly/ garam masala to taste, and check if the meat is knife-tender but not breaking up
  • Remove from heat and garnish with chopped coriander leaves (I didn't have:-()

Aloo Roti**

Things you will need:

Wheat flour/ Atta - 3 cups
Potatoes - 4 medium-sized - boiled, peeled, mashed
Roasted Jeera/ Cumin seeds powder - 2 tsp
Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 2-3 tsp
Salt - to taste

Method:

  • Knead all the ingredients together into a dough without adding water, and use oil only to ensure your hands are not sticky and keep it aside

  • When you are ready to make the rotis, make small balls out of the dough, and start rolling out with a rolling pin
  • Heat a griddle and start baking the rotis

  • When one side is done, turn the roti over and bake the other side
I served these with the Mango Chicken Curry, as below

The Mango Chicken Curry goes to Srilekha's "Chicken" event at Me a My Kitchen.


Note:
*Mammam - a term used for food or meals for children. At home, it is rice for A.
** Aloo Roti - I can never make Aloo Parathas. Because I am incapable of using the mashed potato and masala balls as a filling to a rolled out dough base and roll them out without getting the entire place messy with the filling bursting out from the sides. I prefer to knead the boiled, peeled and mashed potatoes (ensuring there is no water) into the wheat flour and prepare them the normal roti way, and therefore, call it aloo roti.

If your mangoes are sour enough, you may skip using tomatoes, and follow the recipe. If you do not like the bite of onion pieces in the gravy, use only onion paste

29 comments:

anudivya said...

Your post is so cute... and your daughter asking for mamaam is adorable.
Looks like you put in a lot of work, but my guess is your family must have relished it a lot.

Vaishali said...

Those aloo rotis are calling out to me, Shreya. Absolutely gorgeous!

Sangeeth said...

wow! shreya...even at that time u had the talent t o take amazing pic for us ...great entry to the event!

Sum Raj said...

wooo...that was nice reading the post..finally u have agreed to prepared chicken dish with unique combination for ur cute daughter..so sweet...looks delicious....

Madhavi said...

WOW very nice post, love ut aloo roti :))

About Lilva, no it's not peas. If u can't find in grocery stores, u can use green peas or tuvar dana for that recipe!!

amna said...

ur pics are looking so much better and brighter now shreya :) and that chicken curry looks yummy!!

notyet100 said...

enjoyed reading ur post,..mango chicken looks yum,..an so is aloo roti,,

Indian Khana said...

So someone is back with a bang :)...U write very nice..and keep it that way ;)..we all can have some pleasant imagination running in mind. Chicken curry with mango..sounds great..that was a gud experiment :)..and aloo roti..next time am going to try your way...lovely post..keep rocking gal..& ya let me know the dates..mail me ;)

Anonymous said...

Oh god, I want that to eat :(

The trees in the backyard got some mangoes. I will attempt the curry tomorrow. I won't even try wid the roti ...I'll get that at the Roti shop :D

Unknown said...

lovely post shreyaIenjoyed reading great experimentI think you enjoyed bouth

Shreya said...

Hi All, Thanks for the lovely words on this post. I can't help but respond:-)
Divya, my daughter actually licked her fingers, and ate until the very last morsel on her plate was over.
Vaishali, please try the aloo rotis and let me know if you like them.
Sangeeth, I will pass on your praise to my very patient better-half R, because this time, he clicked all the pictures!
Suma, I am so glad I finally made chicken at home after so long! Nothing like children eating happily.
Madhavi, thanks so much for letting me know about the alternatives that I can use for your recipe:-)
Nags, I'll pass the praise on the pictures to R, and he would be delighted! Which also implies that I have to improve, I guess, and efforts will be on towards that. You are my first Guru:-)
Priti, you are the first to compliment me on my writing.Thanks!Will mail for sure:-)
guyanafreepress-I envy you, with mango trees in your backyard!

Swati said...

Great to have you back.. Aloo roti is totally new to me..Lovely!!

Dershana said...

Adding raw mango to chicken sounds yummy! Back home raw mangoes with fish is a popular combo. Will try this with chicken next time i buy one (which is as rare as urs :-)

Deepthi Shankar said...

aloo roti looks good .. i have never kneaded aloo into the dough directly .. does it taste any different from aloo paranthas .. cuz this seems to be an easier option for me too

Valarmathi Sanjeev said...

Nice reading ur post. Love your mango chicken. Looks yummy.

sra said...

A raw mango marinade for chicken? That's really unusual! Was it a sour dish, with the mango, curds and the tomato? I guess the sweetness of the onion must have tempered it. Looks good.

Lubna Karim said...

Mango and chicken sounds yummy. Adding aloo directly and kneading the dough is something new to me.

Srikitchen said...

wow! mouth watering recipe yar! tanginess of the mango in chicken is unimaginable! thanks for participating in the event!

Adam said...

Thanks for showing such great pics about the roti... I always wondered how they make it. It seems very similar to potato type pancakes I have made :) Awesome dish Shreya... you're little one is very lucky

Dee said...

The mango chicken is calling my name. Do you use ripe or unripe mangoes? My mum uses unripe mangoes for her chutney - help please?

ST said...

Those aloo rotis are looking gorgeous!I have never kneaded aloo into the dough directly will try now..Nice write up....

Purva Desai said...

This is really unusual dish, Chicken with Mango.....I think so will try this for sure next time when I make chicken and Aloo rotis looks tempting too....I am sure ur daughter had enjoyed her Mamaam ;)

kat said...

wow, mango chicken sounds wonderfu;!

Cham said...

The tang of mango should go well with chicken, never tasted before, but would love to have right away!

Sujatha said...

thats a cute story of your chicken recipe...:) mango chicken curry sounds interesting too... And best of all, looks awesome! will try this soon..

Sia said...

glad to see u resume blogging girl :)

bee said...

what kind of bombayite are you? we used to eat dinner at midnight. :D

Sig said...

Love reading the story behind how a new recipe is born... Mango chicken sounds absolutely wonderful, I gotta try this sometime!

Unknown said...

I have tried orange chicken.Mango chicken sounds delicious