Crumbed Chicken

This fried chicken is an explosion of flavour to the taste buds. The chicken is first simmered until cooked through before being pan fried in a minimal amount of oil.

The chicken pieces can be prepared skinless, or with skins on. I prefer to leave the skins on as they supply nutrients with benefits that outweigh the fats of the skin, and I, for one, am far from being afraid the fats are going to clog up my arteries. The culprit responsible for Low Density Lipids (LDL cholesterol, the bad guy) blocking the arteries is not saturated fats, but altered and damaged fats, like margarine and oils that have been produced or extracted with heat and chemicals. The moral of the story is: eat the chicken skin!

Ingredients:

1.5kg chicken drumsticks and thighs, skinned if you prefer

7.5ml salt

7.5ml Red Freezer Masala

5ml turmeric

5ml garam masala

2.5ml chilli powder

7.5ml sunflower oil

10ml lemon juice

30ml ghee

30ml sunflower oil for frying

2 large eggs

125ml dried breadcrumbs

Pan Spices:

2 cardamom pods

3-4 whole cloves

4-5 pieces Indian cinnamon

To Garnish:

30ml roughly chopped fresh coriander

Method:

Prepare the marinade for the chicken:

Mix 5ml salt, the Red Freezer Masala, turmeric, garam masala, chilli powder, 7.5ml oil and the lemon juice to a thick paste. Rub well into the chicken and set aside for 5 minutes or more.

Heat the ghee in a wide, deep pot on medium. When hot, add the cardamom, cloves and cinnamon, stir and allow to sizzle for about 30 seconds. Add the chicken pieces, stir, cover and simmer in their own juices for 30-35 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the chicken from sticking to the bottom of the pot. When the juices have cooked away, remove from the pot and drain on absorbent kitchen paper.

While the chicken is cooking, beat the eggs, mixing in 2.5ml salt. Pour the breadcrumbs into a wide, shallow bowl.

Heat 30ml oil in a wide, non-stick pan on high. Dip the chicken in egg and roll in the breadcrumbs until completely coated. Place the pieces in the pan and fry for 1 minute per side, turning twice for a total cooking time of about 3 minutes per piece. Remove as soon as the chicken browns slightly.

Drain on absorbent kitchen paper, garnish with fresh coriander and serve with plain rice.