Spicy Indonesian Chicken and a Stolen Recipe Book

I have a recipe book in which each recipe is lovingly and painstakingly handwritten. I however have not lovingly and painstakingly written those 100 + recipes in the book. I, rather stole it. Haha, ok let me be clear before you start judging me. My sister, who is a very good cook like my mother, used to live with my eldest sister for a good 6 years before the two of them got married. During this time it was her who would do the cooking in the house and she started this recipe book. I don’t know if all the recipes in this book are tried or not. I do know that they are colleted from many different sources like newspapers, magazines, cooking shows and of course from my mother. So, when she got married, she left behind this book at our house. And who came across it? I did! I pounced on it and staked all claim as mine! I started making dishes out of it and had great success with few and not so great with some of them.

This recipe is one with which I had a good experience. I made this last night with plain ol' khichdi to spice things up. The unique flavour of the chicken makes you want to keep eating it. The brown sugar and pepper give it a great twist and it is very easy to make. I have no idea why it is called Indonesian chicken. I tried to Google the name to see if something like this turns up but no luck. The only info I got about Indonesian cooking is that they usually have a sweet and sour flavour in one dish like honey and lime or lemon grass and sugar etc. But who cares where this is from as long as it tastes yum! So let’s cook chicken I say!

Recipe Source – Stolen recipe book from sister!! Lol!

Ingredients

1/2 Kg Chicken – Small pieces
1 Tsp Cumin (Jeera) Powder
1 Tsp Brown Sugar (use regular sugar if not available)
1 Tsp Black Pepper
1/2 Cup Tamarind Pulp
1/2 Tsp Turmeric Powder
1 Tsp Coriander Seeds Powder
1 Tbsp Garlic Paste
Salt To Taste
1/4 Cup Oil

Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl and marinate for one hour. Taste the marinade and adjust the seasonings according to personal taste i.e. spicier or sweeter. Heat the oil in a pan and add the marinated chicken. Fry on high for a few minutes till the chicken turns brown. Turn the heat to low, cover with a lid and cook till the chicken is done. If it is too dry add a little water. Serve as a side dish with pulav or khichdi (khichdi recipe coming soon!).

Happy Eating!!