NOBOBORSHO ELACHI & CURRY PATTA CHICKEN

If in case you have been a follower of my Instagram page, then by now, you know how this dish came into existence, rather when was this cooked. The murmur of your whispers tell me you do: Nobo-borsho or Bengali new year. Every year, we tend to cook a few of the Bengali delicacices owing to the family lunch that follows in the afternoon, post observing the puja rituals. This year also, amidst lock down and quarantine period, we observed with the tradition, following the norms of social distancing.

A slight change took over the menu: replacing the age old classic kosha murgi or kosha mangsho (google them, in case if you aren't aware what these means delicious Bengali words mean), with something new. I am a firm believer of the fact that veterans need to step down at times, for newer players to shine, after all the long journey of life calls for variety at every stage. This humble chicken, of course cooked into a a curry with cardamom being the main focal point, isn't only a story about the green aromatic. rather this works as a pivotal family member, like the daily soaps, bringing in flavors of all the spices together, foraging a story of great relevance, in this case for our taste buds. Harmony was the essence of this curry, originating from Kerala, knows for its generous use of whole spices. Even though with at lest developments, I am not sure if i would like to call it God's own country anymore.

Let's get started with the process before I start yapping on some other topic:

1. Wash & clean 1 kg chicken and cut them into about 8 pieces.  Peel 2 medium size potatoes and cut them into quarters. Slice 2 medium onions, into thin half moon.  Chop 7-8 no fat cloves of garlic, as fine as possible. Chop up 400 gm tomatoes into small pieces.
2. Heat about  4 tbsp mustard oil in a pan, big enough to accommodate all the chicken and the potatoes. To the oil add in 2 broken dry red chilies and 8 no of green cardamom, crushed.
3. Once the aroma of musky sweetness & pungency of the chilies makes you happy, add the 1 tbsp pounded ginger + garlic+ onions+ 3 green chilies (slit)+ pinch of salt &about 10-12 curry leaves. Fry them on a medium flake, till the onion becomes golden.

4.  While the onion is frying, in a small bowl mix 1/2 tsp turmeric powder + 1 tsp red chili powder+ 1 tsp cardamom powder+ 1/2 tsp coriander powder and make a paste with 1.5 tbsp water. Stir all the  spices to mix well and add it to the golden fried onions. Mix and cook till the raw smell of the spices changes into a mellow rounded aroma.

5. Once oil appears on the sides of the pan, throw in chopped tomatoes and give a good stir. Mix well and cover to allow the tomatoes to turn into a glorious mish-mash with onions, which should take about 7 minutes, on medium-high flame.

6. Time to add the chicken pieces and the potato cubes into the pan and give a hearty mix to coat all of them with the spices base of the pan. Mix and then bhuno, on high flame till specs of oil appear on the sides of the pan. Then pour in about 150-180 ml water along with a sprig of curry leaf, cover the pan with lid and cook till chicken pieces and potatoes soften & are cooked through, which should take about 20 mins on medium flame.

7. In the meantime taste and adjust the salt + 1 tsp sugar, to balance out the flavors. Also in case if you need more heat, add in couple of slit green chilies, that's what I did!!
8. After 20 mins, once the protein and domes of carb has soften, crank up the heat, to bring the gravy to a boil, in order to thicken it to desired consistency.

8. Finish the dish with 1 heaped tsp of freshly pounded black pepper powder + a pinch of cardamom powder + chopped coriander leaves.

This finger licking yumilicious dish is best paired with simple pulao or even steamed rice. I assure you, what will stimulate your senses is the elegant sophisticated aroma of the spices. Every bite narrates a story of amalgamation of spices, rather than one ingredient being  the hero of the dish. I would like you to remember some pointers will cooking this up:

A. You can of course cut the chicken into smaller pieces, but with bigger pieces you get to braise them well.
B. This dish is mellow in the spice quotient, so feel free to add in more chili powder of slit green chilies to up the game!!
C.  If you see, I have added curry leaves in 2 stages in the dish, that's because I love how they leave behind a sublime fragrance while braising the chicken, in case if your taste buds think it's too much, leave that out.
D. Adding in some sugar always helps to bring in a  lovely balance to the entire dish, you can of course omit it, shall you wish to!!

Happiness like food is mandatory to be shared. This humble dish is surely one of a celebratory recipe in my repertoire.  I hope it wins over you and your guests as well, like it happened with me. Do drop in an image in case you make it in your kitchen, or you make changes to suit it to your bill!!!

Happy cooking. Staying safe should be the main prerogative in the changed world!!