Chicken with tamarind and palm sugar

Name: Chicken with tamarind and palm sugar
Cuisine: India
Ingredients: 60 ml/4 tbsp mustard or sunflower oil; 60 ml/4 tbsp mustard or sunflower oil; 8 garlic cloves; 25 g/1 oz fresh root ginger, chopped; 2 onions, roughly chopped; 2 dried red chillies; 5 ml/1 tsp cumin seeds; 10 ml/2 tsp coriander seeds; 4 green cardamom pods; 5 ml/1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns; zest and juice of 2 limes; 7.5 ml/1½ tsp salt; 1 chicken, about 1.3 kg/3 lb; Plain Boiled Rice, to serve; 4 fresh green chillies, halved lengthways (deseeded if preferred); 30 ml/2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (cilantro); 30 ml/2 tbsp tamarind pulp; 15 ml/1 tbsp palm sugar (jaggery), grated; 200 g/7 oz canned chopped tomatoes; 4 kaffir lime leaves, shredded; 1 bay leaf; 5 ml/1 tsp ground turmeric; 2.5 cm/1 in piece of cinnamon stick; 2 brown cardamom pods, bruised

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The Complete Indian Regional Cookbook

By Mridula Baljekar

Published 2017

About

The origins of this recipe, Naram Kukhura Ko Masu, lie in Nepal, just across the border, but it is popular among most of the tribal states in north-east India. The use of Sichuan pepper is also an external influence, drawn from neighbouring China. The tart flavour of tamarind combined with the caramel sweetness of palm sugar gives a pleasing sweet and sour slant to the dish.

Ingredients

Asia
India
Northeast India
Main course
Gluten-free

Ingredients

Method