Bangalore Chicken in Green Sauce
Bangalore chicken is a South Indian dish where chicken simmers in a green sauce of fresh coriander, green chilli, and coconut milk. The dish comes from Karnataka in southern India, where coconut and fresh herbs feature heavily in the cooking.
The sauce gets its colour and fragrance from a paste of coriander and chilli, which is fried briefly in ghee with onion, garlic, and spices. Coconut milk rounds everything out and gives the sauce a rich, mild character. Despite the green chillies, the dish is not particularly hot – the seeds are removed and the coconut milk takes the edge off the heat.
It works as a weekend dinner or for guests — the hands-on time is short and most of it simmers unattended. Serve with cooked rice. A scatter of fresh coriander leaves just before serving is a good finish.
Ingredients
Serves 6
- 3 tbsp ghee (or vegetable oil)
- 2 onions, thinly sliced
- 6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1½ tsp ground dhana jeera (or ½ tsp ground coriander + ½ tsp ground cumin)
- 40 g fresh coriander leaves
- 3 large green chillies, deseeded, chopped
- 1 whole chicken (about 1½ kg), cut into 8 pieces
- 150 ml chicken stock
- 300 ml coconut milk
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- fresh coriander leaves, to garnish
Directions
Heat the ghee or oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions and fry, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes until soft and golden.
Add the garlic, turmeric, and dhana jeera. Fry, stirring, for 3 minutes more.
Blend the coriander and green chilli to a paste in a blender or food processor. Pour the paste into the pan, reduce the heat to very low, and cook, stirring constantly, for 10 minutes.
Add the chicken pieces and turn them thoroughly in the spice mixture so they are well coated.
Add the stock, coconut milk, and salt. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, and cover. Simmer for about 50 minutes, turning the chicken pieces a couple of times. The dish is ready when the juices run clear when you pierce a thick piece with a skewer.
Add the lemon juice and season with salt.
Lift the chicken pieces out and arrange on a serving dish. Keep warm. Increase the heat and reduce the sauce for 5–8 minutes until it is smooth and lightly thickened.
Pour the sauce over the chicken and garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Serve with cooked rice.
Notes
Active time about 20 minutes, simmering time about 50 minutes.
The coriander and chilli paste needs a full 10 minutes of cooking – that is where the sauce loses its raw, herbal edge and becomes rounded. If the heat is too high the paste will catch on the bottom of the pan.
Adjust the heat level by using fewer chillies or leaving some seeds in. The standard recipe with three deseeded chillies gives a mild dish.
Ghee gives the most authentic flavour, but a neutral oil works too. Do not use olive oil – the taste does not suit the dish.
See Also
Cucumber Raita (Kheera Raita)
Mint Raita
Coconut Chutney
