Think about the crunchiest, crispiest snack you can have this evening and fried chicken is probably going to pop up immediately. Whether it is Kentucky fried chicken or any other kind, fried chicken is certainly one of the most popular snacks all around the world. India and Indian non-vegetarians are no exception to this, so naturally, we have plenty of fried chicken recipes of our own. Now if you are looking for a crunchy bowl of fried chicken that is also spicy, super-hot and delicious, then this Amritsari Fried Chicken recipe is all you will ever need.
In case you didn’t know, Amritsari food, whether it is fish, chicken or even chickpeas, is usually spicy. Punjabis love their spice and those from Amritsari particularly love their food a bit hot. What’s more, Punjabis also love no-holds-barred kind of cooking, which is why they are extremely generous with spices, ingredients and even fats like ghee and oil. Amritsari Fried Chicken is a clear and confident expression of these culinary values.
Video courtesy: YouTube/Continental Healthy Food
So popular is this Amritsari Fried Chicken in the old Punjabi city, that you can easily find it being sold by any and all non-vegetarian food vendors, whether they are on the streets or running dhabas and eateries. Known for its distinctive red colour, this fried chicken variety is as crunchy as you can imagine but is also quite spicy. The signature red colour of Amritsari Fried Chicken comes from the use of red chilli powder, although some people also use red food colouring. We would, however, recommend that you skip the food colour and rely instead on red chilli powder and deep fry the chicken until it turns that beautiful shade of red.
Once these Amritsari Fried Chicken are cooked to perfection, you can easily serve them with a cup or two of chai. A light cucumber and onion salad usually pairs really well with this dish, and so do green chutney and mayonnaise. Here’s the easy-peasy recipe you need to make Amritsari Fried Chicken at home this evening.
Ingredients:
250 g chicken
½ cup hung curd
½ tbsp refined flour or maida
1 onion, chopped
½ tsp ginger garlic paste
½ tsp cinnamon stick
1 cardamom
3-4 black peppercorns
½ tsp fennel seeds
1 clove
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp coriander seeds
¼ tsp carom seeds
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
½ tsp garam masala
Salt, to taste
Oil, for frying
Method:
1. Place the onion, ginger garlic paste, cinnamon, cardamom, black peppercorns, fennel seeds, clove, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, carom seeds, red chilli powder, garam masala and salt in a grinder jar.
2. Grind the spices into a fine paste.
3. Transfer the ground spices into a large bowl.
4. Add the hung curd and maida, and mix well.
5. Wash, clean and pat dry the chicken pieces.
6. Place the chicken in the marinate bowl and mix well.
7. Now, heat oil in a pan.
8. Add one properly coated chicken piece one after the other and fry on a medium to low flame.
9. Once the fried chicken turns golden, remove from the oil and drain on a paper towel.
10. Serve the fried chicken hot with green chutney and a salad.