The humble besan that is a usual suspect in most Indian kitchens is used for various purposes. Besan or gram flour is commonly used in a lot of Indian dishes. Right from breakfast chillas and parathas to lunch curries and dinner subzis, you’d find that besan can fit the bill in most cases. Despite being such a versatile ingredient in our home kitchens, it hasn’t received its due credit and acknowledgement. The ability of besan to level up any dish is so amazing that it would take us all day in its praise. Made by grinding chickpeas, this flour is full of protein and nutrition.
Did you know that besan is high in soluble fibre that is great for heart health? Oh yes, and not just that, the same flour is also good for keeping the cholesterol levels in check as well as preventing iron deficiency in your body. Since it is made from lentils, it is also packed with protein. The pakoras that people relish on a rainy day are made with a besan batter and are loved by many. Such is the craze of this flour that even in the past, Mughal emperors like Bahadur Shah Zafar loved eating a besan and milk flatbread for breakfast, as mentioned in the book, The Emperor’s Table by a Persian scholar. This unleavened bread was called besani.
In fact, a dish like kadhi which is so popular across India is also believed to have been born out of besan. This is because it is said that to make the gravy thicker, besan was added and hence, we got our delightful kadhi. The fanfare of this magical flour has spread around the world too, with besan being used by Roman soldiers on their swords as flour. What makes us talk so much about besan is this quirky besani murgh that we just came across. A fairly simple recipe that requires minimum ingredients and less hassle, this besani murgh is a great lunch dish.
To prepare besani murgh at home, you need to begin by marinating the chicken. You can opt for boneless chicken if you like. The chicken is cleaned and washed and then onions are sliced. Mixed with oil, spices like coriander powder, red chilli powder, turmeric, cumin powder and ginger garlic paste is coated on the chicken. The chicken is nicely tossed in this mix and kept aside. A marination of half an hour would be sufficient to let all the flavours get infused into the chicken pieces. Once done, oil is heated in a kadhai and whole spices are added to it. Throw in the sliced onions that you have too. Next, after frying this, gram flour is added and continuously stirred.
Finally the chicken is added to the kadhai and everything is combined together. The besan should soak the oil and then you can add some water and let it cook for some more time till it becomes tender.
Your besani murgh is ready to be served with chapattis or steamed rice.
Here’s a detailed recipe if you want to try.