Pepper Chicken (Milagu Kozhi)

Mmmm... Man, do I ever love this pepper chicken! Pepper chicken is a Chettinadu style dish. It's a spicy chicken dish that can be used as an appetizer if made dry or as a curry if made slightly looser. This version is particularly easy and involves minimal prep work! One thing that I have to insist on is the use of freshly ground black pepper. This will give you the best possible flavor to the dish (it is called pepper chicken for a reason...)!


Ingredients:

Chicken - 2 lb, cleaned and cut into small pieces
Onions - 2 medium, chopped
Garlic - 8 cloves
Ginger - 1 1/2 inch piece, ground to paste with garlic
Tomatoes - 1 medium, chopped
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 1/2 tsp, or to taste
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Fennel powder - 1 tsp
Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
Fresh pepper powder (milagu podi) - 2 tsp, or to taste

For seasoning:

Oil
Whole black peppercorns - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

Method:

1. Heat oil in pan and do seasoning. Add onions and fry until golden brown.

2. Now, add paste of ginger and garlic, chilli powder, and coriander powder. Fry until raw smell disappears.

3. Add tomatoes, chicken, salt, and turmeric. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook without adding any water. Since the chicken will let out its own juices, you usually will not need to add any water.

4. When the chicken is cooked, but not falling apart, add the fennel powder, cumin powder, and fresh pepper powder.

5. Once the gravy bubbles, turn the stove off. Check for seasoning and squeeze a few drops of fresh lime juice to increase the flavor.

6. What else to do now but enjoy?! Use as an appetizer (with a cold beer, if you're into alcohol) or as a side with rotis.

Note: If you want more of a gravy consistency to mix with rice, you may need to add a little bit of water as the chicken finishes cooking.