Recipe for Kasa Kai Chicken Pulao
November and December are the two busiest months of the year for me, Happy busy ofcourse as we get the house deep cleaned for Christmas along with arranging all the Christmas decorations, lights, etc. I hardly get much time to cook an entire meal during these days and I'm always on the run for quick recipes. At the same time, my family and I being foodies, can never settle for "Average tasting food" (I Know I Know....we are quite a fuss like that)There was a day in November when I marinated Chicken Drumsticks overnight to make a quick Chicken curry or Chicken fry the next morning to have it with bread. However, morning came and the tastebuds got activated to have Pulao and Chicken curry and Chicken fry and everything under the sun!!!! I knowwwww right!Now, Mumbai is known as one of the busiest cities and a city known for 'Jugaad'. Me being a Mumbaichi porgi, I very conveniently use these two qualities very efficiently especially when it comes to food :)I opened the fridge, saw my Pav Bhaji Masala, Frankie Masala, Kasuri Methi and Sambhar spice powder staring at me sadly from the corner of their eye eagerly wanting to be loved :) "Kasa Kai bhara Hai I am Mumbai!!" is the first thought that came to mind as soon as I saw the masalas and said chalo let's do some 'Jugaad' . The Chicken Pulao turned so delish and the best part is that you don't have to restrict yourself with any particular spice powder, you can freely use any spices that you prefer. You can also use this to make a mixed masala Veg Pulao!My friend Deepa was over for lunch and I told her "Deepu, agar acha hai toh hi main Blog pe share karoongi" (Only if it's good, I'll share the recipe on my blog) When Deepu took her second helping and said "bindass share karo! Bohot tashty hai", I immediately clicked a picture for the cover page :) :)Please Do give this recipe a try! It's a Mumbai Sixer...I Promise You
Servings 6 people
Ingredients
Marinate the Chicken with the following
- 1 Kg Chicken Drumsticks(Or you can use full Chicken cut into medium pieces)
- 1 Tspn Kashmiri Chilly Powder
- 1/2 Tspn Turmeric Powder
- 1 Tspn Cumin seed Powder
- 1 Tspn Coriander Seed Powder
- 1.5 Tspn Sambhar Masala Powder(I use Everest)
- 1.5 Tspn Pav Bhaji Masala Powder(I use Badshah)
- 1/2 Tspn Kasuri Methi(optional)
- 1/2 Tspn Frankie Masala(optional)
- Juice of 1 Lemon
- 2 Tspn Ginger Garlic Paste
- 1 Tbspn Curd
Other Ingredients for the Pulao
- 2 Cups Basmati Rice
- 1/2 Tspn Shahi Jeera(optional)
- 1.5 Tbsp Ghee
- 4 cloves
- 5 Pepper Corns
- 3 Green Cardamom
- 4 small pieces Cinnamon
- 2 Large Onions(sliced)
- 1 Tspn Ginger Garlic paste
- 2-3 Green Chillies(slit)
- 1 Large Tomato(Sliced)
- 2 Indian Veg Maggi cubes
- 1/2 Tspn Salt
- 3 Cups of water(use the same cup as used for measuring the rice)
- 7-8 sprigs of fresh Coriander with stem(chopped fine)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, wash the Chicken, drain out all the water and with the help of a knife, make random incisions(cuts) on every piece. Add all the ingredients mentioned under the Chicken marination section and mix well. Keep this in the refrigerator overnight or if you're pressed for time, atleast an hour marination is a must.
- Wash the rice thrice or 4 times until the water runs clear. Drain off all the water and keep it aside
- In a large vessel(larger the vessel better will be the texture of the rice), heat the ghee. Once the ghee turns hot, add the peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon and cardamom. Let the aroma of the whole spices get infused into the hot ghee. Now add the sliced onion and shah jeera and let it cook until the onions turn translucent(keep stirring or the onions will get stuck at the bottom of the vessel)
- Then add the Tomatoes, Chillies and Ginger garlic paste and mix it well
- Once the Tomatoes become soft and mushy, add the marinated Chicken and let this cook for about 2 minutes. Once you've noticed that the oil has separated in the vessel, cover the vessel with a lid and lower the heat, Allow this to cook for about 5-7 minutes. DO NOT ADD WATER.
- Now Add the washed rice and stir for 2-3 minutesNote: Please stir the rice only with a silicone spatula or flat spoon so that the rice is treated gently and doesn't break while stirring.
- In the bowl in which the chicken was marinated, add 3 cups of waterNote: A traditional Pulao calls for 1:2 ratio of Rice to Water. However if the rice was soaked in water for about 15 minutes or more, we reduce the water content while cooking the pulao because the rice has already soaked in quite a bit of water. Also, while cooking a Chicken Pulao, the Chicken leaves a lot of water. Hence, we don't use the 1:2 formula here. If we use more water than required, it will take time for the water to evaporate, thus increasing the cooking time of the rice and this will make the rice Mushy(or Pach Pach as we say in konkani)
- Moving on after allllllll that gyaan!!! Add the water into the vessel. Add the chopped coriander, maggi cube and check the water for salt. The water should be a tad bit salty. I say salty because the rice will soak in all the spices and salt. So, if the water is less salty, the rice once cooked will taste a bit saltless. If you like it tangy, You can add some more lemon juice or vinegar here. Cover the Vessel and let it cook on medium heat
- Once the water evaporates, turn off the heat and keep the vessel half opened for about 10minutes. We do this because any rice dish tends to be a little mushy/sticky as soon as it it ready. It's like a new bride, takes time to open up initally and then eventually becomes A RICEing SuperStar!!
- Enjoyyyyyyy this Mumbai Jugaad Kasa Kai Pulao with you family and friends. A definite Winter Winner dish!
