Chicken Pachadi/Chicken Pickle

Today I made a dish from my mom's diary - Kodi Pachadi/Chicken Pickle. My mom always used to have this on hand just because I am a picky eater growing up and if I did not like the curry she cooked that day, she would make sure that there is something for me to eat. Mom is mom always - Love u lots amma :)..

I have tried lot of versions of this pickle but by far this is my favorite. This recipe does not use mustard seeds or does not call for tadka or talimpu. Preparing this dish needs little patience and time but at the end of the day all that work is worth it. Hope you guys will like it as much as I like it :)

Ingredients

1 1/2 kg or 3.3 lb boneless Chicken cut into bite size pieces(Bone in chicken can also be used)
1/2 kg or 500 ml vegetable oil
3/8 cup(1/4 cup + 2 tbsp) salt

3/8 cup(1/4 cup + 2 tbsp) red chili powder
3/8 cup(1/4 cup + 2 tbsp) lemon juice

For Paste

5 whole garlic(150 grams)

100 grams ginger(Allam)

50 grams (3/4 cup) coriander seeds(Dhaniyalu)

50 grams (1/4 cup + 1/2 tbsp) Poppy seeds(Gasagasalu)

For Powder

16 elaichi/Cardamom
16 cloves(Lavangalu)
10gms cinnamon(Dalchina chekka)

Method

Take chicken, little turmeric and 2 tsp salt in a pan. Cook the chicken till done and all the water from the chicken gets evaporated. Set the chicken aside.
While the chicken is cooking prepare the paste out of paste ingredients without adding any water and masala powder out of masala powder ingredients. Set aside.

Once the chicken, paste and masala powder are ready, heat oil in a deep pan. Fry the chicken pieces till light golden brown in batches. Set the chicken pieces aside. Add the paste to the oil. Fry till the the raw smell is all gone and till the color of the mixture is changed(You can see the color variation in the picture below). Keep stirring. Add in salt and red chili powder and mix well.

1 & 2. Cooking Chicken -- 3. Ground paste -- 4. Masala Powder -- 5. Cooked Chicken -- 6. Frying Chicken -- 7. Fried Chicken -- 8. Cooking paste -- 9. Cooked paste and salt, red chili powder added -- 10. Mixture ready for chicken pieces to be added -- 11. Added in the chicken pieces -- 12. Added in lemon juice and masala powder and pickle is ready!!

Now add in the chicken pieces and mix well. Turn off the heat, sprinkle the masala powder and add in lemon juice and mix well. Check the spices and salt. At this point the gravy will be little salty. But once it sits for 3 to 4 hours, the chicken pieces will absorb some of the salt leaving the gravy with right taste :)..

Let the mixture cool and let it sit for atleast 2 hours to 4 hours before eating it. You will not go wrong if you use the exact measurements mentioned above. After 4 hours transfer it to an airtight container and put it in the refrigerator for long shelf life.

Note

1. By cup in the above recipe I mean the regular measuring cups.
2. While cooking the chicken, if the chicken is all cooked and there is still water in there just drain the water into a bowl and store the water to use it like a stock later.
3. You want more gravy then just use 1 kg chicken instead of 1 1/2 kg.
4. You can follow the same recipe for Lamb/goat but instead of cooking in a pan just pressure cook the meat for 2 to 3 whistles depending on the tenderness of the meat.