CHICKEN 65

Dish of the day- Chicken 65

Place- Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.

This is my favourite Hyderabadi item (apart from biryani :P) From the land of Nawabs comes this tantalizing chicken starter that can be prepared dry or with a gravy. I personally like it dry.

I was fascinated about the reason behind this whacky name and I got an equally incredible answer from my dad. During the British rule, this chicken preparation was 65^th on the menu list of the military. The name just stuck because the Britishers liked it a lot and we didn’t bother to correct them..

The best part about Chicken 65 is its flavour. It has a distinct Hyderabadi kebab taste; but is usually garnished with curry leaves (Kadi patta) so that adds an Andhra cooking touch to it. Key ingredients include cayenne pepper, mustard powder, ginger and vinegar.

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Chicken (boneless, skinless thighs).....................1 kg

Corn Flour................................................................2 tsps

All Purpose Flour....................................................2 tsps

Egg.............................................................................1

Ginger(paste)..........................................................1.5 tsps

Garlic(paste)...........................................................1.5 tsps

Red Chilies(powder)...............................................2 tsps

Green Chilies...........................................................12

Yoghurt.....................................................................2 cups

Garam Masala..........................................................1 tsp

Food Color(Red)......................................................4 drops 

Curry leaves for garnishing

Lime juice.................................................................3 tsps

Salt to taste

Vegetable Oil for deep frying

*Please make sure that the food colour you use is red and not orange-red because otherwise the Chicken 65 loses all visual appeal.

*Garam Masala is actually a powdered mixture of cloves, cardamom and cinnamon.

Directions:-

1) Mix the corn flour, all purpose flour, egg, ginger paste, garlic paste, chilli powder and salt to make a thick batter. Add water if required.

2) Add the chicken pieces to the batter and marinate for an hour.

3) Deep fry the marinated chicken pieces till they turn golden

 4) Heat 4 tsp oil in a sauce pan and add slit chillies, yogurt, garam masala, red color, little salt and the fried chicken pieces.

 5) Shallow fry for 4-5 minutes and remove from heat.

6) Add lime juice, mix well and garnish with curry leaves.

Serve hot as a starter with drinks or with rice and sambhar :)