About The Author
Hello! From Chuchura (in Hooghly District) and a foodie, I created this blog with a mission to preserve the food of the land; with a message to encourage and promote clean and real food. I hope you enjoy and gain out of this blog, happy reading!
Looking forward to read and hear your feedback.
If you want a chicken chaap that is cooked with minimal oil, stop right there! This recipe is made with considerable amount of oil and ghee, as is the norm.
Is Oil Bad for You?
Oil is not bad for the body. In reality, good fats help you remain healthy. Sadly, most kitchens stock unhealthy refined oil. It is important that you use the right oil.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on the Chicken Chaap
In this section, I will answer some of the oft-asked questions (FAQs) on the dish.
Chicken chaap is a dish from Mughal cuisine that requires slow roasting of the chicken in ghee lathered with a rich marinade consisting of cashew nuts, melon seeds and poppy seeds among others.
I could not find where the recipe was first developed. However, this dish gained popularity in Bengal when the Nawabs shifted base to the region from Dhaka.
Traditionally, a whole leg (including the thigh) of chicken is served along with a rich gravy that has oil oozing out of it.
You can also use a whole breast. Remember to brine and put cuts (gashes) on the meat. Brining will make the chicken juicier, while putting gashes will ensure that the breast meat cooks thoroughly.
Many restaurants and joints also use the drumstick only. The choice is all yours.
Every care has been taken to replicate the recipe at Royal Indian Hotel.
At Royal, a smaller sized cock is used which weighs around a kilogram. A cock is cut in 4 pieces to provide two breasts and two legs.
The restaurant also uses a mix of ghee and dalda. However, we have used ghee and oil.You can add dalda instead for better flavors.
If you do not have cashew nuts or melon seeds, you can substitute with pea nuts (without the covers). And use a teaspoon more of poppy seeds.
Cooking and Tasting the Chicken Chaap – My Experience in Brief
Chicken Chaap has a creamy texture. It is rich, flavorful and aromatic. The gravy appears greasy
because of the oil content.
It takes more time to make the preparation for the dish. Cooking is easy, on a slow flame and demands some amount of patience for an excellent result.
A chicken chaap is normally served with a paratha. In Bengal, this is one of the most ordered side-dishes with a Kolkata-style biryani.
I relished this chicken chaap with a basanti pulao which is a sweet, yellow-colored fragrant pulao made with gobindobhog rice in Bengal.
Note
The equipment & ingredient quantity provided in this recipe is to assist you in cooking this dish. Feel free to experiment with your ingredients. Remember that we all have different set, size & shape of kitchen tools in our pantry.
Equipment
- Mixie for making the paste
- Knife for chopping
- Flat-bottomed wok
- Spatula
- Preparation Bowls
- Serving Plates
Ingredients
- 3 pc chicken legs with thighs
- 200 ml oil or dalda
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 100 g curd
- 60 g sattu (chhatu in Bengali) 5-6 tea spoons
- salt to taste
- 1/2 tsp meetha attar optional, only for the fragrance
For the Poppy Seed Paste
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds
- 2 tbsp char magaz
- 1 bowl water for soaking
For the Ginger Garlic Chilly Paste
- 4 pc medium sized onions
- 2 pc green chilly
- 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilly
- 3 inch ginger
- 9-12 pc garlic cloves
For the Chicken Chaap Spice Mix
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 3 pc cardamom pods
- 2 pc cloves
- 1/3 pc nutmeg
- 1 pc mace
Instructions
Preparing the Chicken Marinade for Chicken Chaap
- In a mixie, prepare a paste of all ingredients mentioned under "For the Poppy Seed Paste"
- Prepare a paste of all ingredients mentioned under "For the Ginger Garlic Chilly Paste"
- Similarly, prepare a paste mix of all ingredients mentioned under "For the Chicken Chaap Spice Mix"
- Take a large bowl enough to hold the chicken leg pieces and the marinade
- Add curd, sattu and meetha attar to the bowl
- Add all the three paste mix prepared in the previous steps
- Give it a nice stir and ensure that there are no lumps
- Put a couple of slits on each side of the chicken leg pieces and add them to the marinade in the bowl
- Massage for a few minutes
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. For best results, allow to rest overnight in the refrigerator
Cooking the Chicken Chaap
- Take out the marinaded chicken from refrigerator and allow to come to a room temperature
- Take a large flat bottomed wok and put the flame on medium
- Add oil/dalda/ghee and allow this to heat. Since the quality of oil or ghee is large, it will take some time
- Once hot, add the pieces of leg one by one
- Fry for 2-3 minutes on each side
- Add the rest of the marinade to the flat bottomed wok
- Put the flame on very low, cover and cook for around 10 minutes. Uncover, check and change sides after 10 minutes
- Repeat the same process for another 10 minutes
- Add salt and allow to simmer for another couple of minutes
- Check for seasonings and adjust if required
- Put off the flame
- Serve hot with a pulao, or parantha or biryani
Notes
- If you are using mustard oil for the chicken chaap recipe, ensure that the mustard oil is burnt properly before proceeding with it. Since a lot of oil is added, the final result can have the pungency of the mustard which may not be appreciated. Indeed, I made the same mistake
- Dalda is recommended because of its flavor profile. However, dalda is unhealthy. Once in a while is okay.
- At Royal Indian Hotel, they also use meetha attar for the fragrance. It is not mandatory and you can skip it
- Instead of Sattu, you can also use Besan or Bengal gram flour. Ensure that you roast it lightly before adding to the marinade
- You can also add a few strands of saffron strands to the marinade. I have skipped it to keep the cost down
Hey, I’m Sayak! I hope you’re having a good day. I love this recipe and will cook it for the first time. You’re doing a great job so I have a couple of questions for you. Please answer them for me else I have a hard time figuring out the right proportion of ingredients. Question 1: Can I take a boneless breast piece for this recipe? Question 2: Can you please tell me the recipe for this dish if I cook it for four adults?
I’ll be highly obliged for your response! Thank you! Have a good day ahead.
Hello Sayak, you may use breast piece. Just ensure that the meat is from a younger chicken, and if that is a challenge brine the meat once you have brought it home. Brining it for 4 hours should be enough. For 4 people, the recipe I have shared must help you. As I have already mentioned in the blog – use your intuition, go slow on the salt till the dish is almost done.
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This is an excellent and easy to follow recipe. I tried it and turned out really well. Thanks Samrat !
Thank you Peeyush for trying this recipe and sharing the outcome!