Chicken Thoran is a delicacy from Kerala a state in the southern part of India. Chopped chicken is cooked with pearl onions, ginger and garlic. This is then mixed with a spicy coconut mix and cooked till dry. It contains all of Arun’s favourites -chicken, coconut, shallots and curry leaves. And the thoran came out well when I first made this recipe. This is yet another dish that has become a regular part of the menu in our home.
Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoon Coconut oil
- 1 cup Coconut, freshly grated or frozen
- 1 teaspoon Red chilli powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 3 sprigs Curry leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 5 Shallots, peeled and chopped(*refer notes)
- 2 tablespoon Garlic, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 tablespoon Ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 500 grams Boneless Chicken, chopped into small bite sized pieces
- 1 teaspoon Salt or as needed
- 1 teaspoon Garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon Black pepper powder
Preparation:
Take coconut, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and curry leaves in a bowl and mix them all together.
Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pan. Add mustard seeds. Once it pops, add in shallots, ginger and garlic. Fry till the shallots start to turn brown.
Add the chicken, salt, garam masala and pepper powder. Mix them gently through the shallots. The chicken will change colour. Cover with a lid and cook for ten minutes on a medium-low flame. The cooked chicken should be soft and tender, and it would have left out water.
Add in the coconut spice mixture and stir them through. Cook till the thoran is completely dry by stirring often. Make sure it does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
Serve hot with rice or roti.
Notes:
- Instead of shallots you can use 1 – 1 and 1/2 cup peeled and chopped Pearl onions(chinna vengayam).
- The chilli powder I have used is very spicy. So I have used a teaspoon of it. Adjust the amount of it depending on the spice level of yours to your preference.
