Chicken Nihari...A Royal Delicacy from Lucknow

Traditionally ‘Nihari’ was cooked with mutton or beef in the royal palaces of Lucknow as breakfast curry. The name comes from the Arabic word ‘Nahar’ which means morning. The Nawabs of Lucknow liked the mutton nihari with laccha parathas as breakfast.

It is very spicy and delicious dish with lots of whole spices grinded freshly without roasting them.

To suit me and my family’s palate, I cooked Nihari using boneless chicken and a little less spicy for my little one. And yes added few ingredients to enhance and make up for the spicy ness.

One very important fact I got from one of the site is this recipe is also a great homemade remedy for common cold and fever.  So here is my second royal dish straight from the streets of lucknow(now adays).

Chicken Nihari

Ingredients

Chicken- 2 big breast pieces around 1kg, cut into cubes/pieces)

 Onions- 3 (sliced)

Ginger-garlic paste- 2tsp

Red chilli powder- 1tsp

Turmeric powder- 1tsp

Coriander powder- 1tsp

Coriander leaves- 2tbsp (chopped)

Bay leaf- 1

Cinnamon stick- 1

Whole wheat flour- 2tbsp

Salt- as per taste

Sugar- 1tbsp (I am a Bengali, can’t miss sugar in non-veg dishes)

Dry Mango powder (Amchoor powder)- 1tbsp

Ghee- 1tbsp

Oil- 4tbsp

Water- 2 or more cups(it should be thick gravy)

For ‘Nihari’ Masala

Fennel seeds- 2tbsp

Cumin seeds- 2tbsp

Green cardamoms- 4

Black cardamom- 1

Cloves- 8

Black peppercorns- 15

Nutmeg- 1tsp

Cinnamon stick- 1

Bay leaf- 1

Dry ginger powder- 1tsp

Process

Grind all the items listed under 'Nihari Masala' into a fine powder in a mixer and keep it aside.  You can simply store the excess masala in a container for later use.

Clean and wash the chicken pieces thoroughly. Place them on a tissue and soak the water.

 Heat two tablespoon of oil in a pan or a kadhai and put the half batch of chicken pieces. Sprinkle a little turmeric powder for a brilliant colour. Fry the chicken pieces till they are golden. Repeat the same process for the second batch.

Once they are fried, take them out and keep aside. You may need to use a flat shaped spatula as because of the turmeric powder they might stick to the pan.

In the same pan, now add 2 tbsp oil, bay leaf, cinnamon stick and add the sliced onions. Fry them on medium heat till they are golden. Add ginger-garlic paste, turmeric powder, coriander powder, half teaspoon of red chilli powder, two teaspoon of the nihari masala prepared earlier. The masala will be very dry in the pan/kadhai. Add half a cup of water and cook for another 4 minutes. Now add the fried chicken pieces to it and cook for 5 minutes. Add salt and a cup of water to the kadhai and mix well.

While the chicken is cooking in the pan, prepared a batter with whole wheat flour and water with a smooth flowing consistency and pour it in the kadhai. Give it a good mix with the spatula. Check and adjust the taste.

 Let the chicken boil in the gravy and absorb all the spices. You may need to cover the pan/kadhai and let it cook for about 15 minutes on very a low flame. And don’t forget to stir it at regular intervals with the spatula as because of the flour, the gravy may stick to the bottom. Add the amchoor powder to the kadhai and mix well.

 After 15 minutes, remove the lid and check whether the chicken is well cooked or not. Check the taste again. If all good, switch off the gas and keep the lid on.

Tadka

Heat the ghee in a tadka pan and add half teaspoon of red chilli powder and one teaspoon of the remaining nihari masala. Fry for few seconds and add it to the cooked chicken curry.

You can garnish the chicken with chopped coriander leaves. Serve it warm with Rice or Nans or roomali rotis or even plain rotis.

Happy Cooking!!!