Fried Chicken in a Chutney Marinade

I think the whole world knows that when you bread a bird and cook it in oil, you get the best food ever. This particular recipe is a variation of my Bengali fried fish, made for my mother, who does not eat fish.

Ingredients

For the chicken

• 350–400 g boneless chicken thigh fillets. You can use breast meat as well.

For the marinade

• 6 garlic cloves
• ½" knob of ginger
• 3 green chillies (seeds and all)
• 100 g coriander (leaves and stems)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 3–4 teaspoons of water
• Salt to taste

For the breading

• 2 cups of breadcrumbs
• 4 eggs
• ¼ cup of plain flour
• Salt to taste

Method

Marinate and crumb

1. Prepare the marinade: grind all the marinade ingredients (except the water) in a liquidiser or a spice grinding jar.
2. The marinade should be a thick paste, so only use some of the water to help the ingredients grind.
3. Once done, it should be a bright, vibrant green.
4. Coat all the fillets with the marinade. You want a generous layer across the fillets, not thick, but with complete coverage.
5. Rest the fillets, covered, in the fridge for at least 3 hours. I suggest using a glass or similar non-reactive container.
6. To prepare the breading, season the breadcrumbs and the plain flour with a little salt.
7. Beat the eggs so they are a thick liquid, but not frothy.
8. Remove the chicken from the fridge.
9. Dip it in the flour and lightly dust all sides. The chicken should be damp enough from the marinade for the flour to stick to it.
10. Dip the chicken in the egg and then in the crumbs.
11. Dip the chicken in the egg again and crumb it a second time. This gives you a thick enough layer to protect the chicken and get nice and crispy.
12. Let the crumbed chicken rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before you start frying. It can rest for up to 4 hours. If resting any longer than 30 minutes, pull it out 10 minutes before you start cooking.

Frying

1. Use a skillet large enough to cook 2 fillets at a time with about an inch and a half of space around each fillet.
2. The chicken should be shallow fried, so use enough oil to come halfway up the thickness of the fillets.
3. Heat the oil on medium heat until a cube of bread dropped in starts gently bubbling.
4. Put in the fillets and cook until one side is golden, then flip them over and cook the other side to the same colour.
5. Pull them out and let them rest on absorbent paper.
6. Cook the other fillets in the same way.
7. Serve hot.

To serve

I would serve this with kasundi: strong and pungent, it looks like a bright yellow, liquid seeded mustard.

But this chicken holds up well with ketchup or mayonnaise, and I also recommend trying it with tzatziki.

Tips

1. If you want a lighter breading, don’t double dip, but stick a few more crumbs on in the first round.
2. Don’t let the oil get too hot, or the crumbs will burn before the chicken is cooked.

Eat in good health!