Monday, July 14, 2008

Mango Chicken

My husband had a bout of enthusiasm on going to the Indian store one day and brought a crate of mangoes home. After giving some away, I still had a bunch to deal with. Mind you, this was one problem I didn't mind dealing with in the least! After eating a good number of them out of hand, I thought about making something for dinner one day and decided on making a savory dish using mangoes.

The inspiration for creating this mango chicken was actually from a dish I had at a restaurant that served Thai and Malaysian food. The dish we ordered there had shrimp, but I substituted chicken as I didn't have any shrimp at home to make this with. Sweet mangoes marry with spicy green chillies, salty soy sauce, and crunchy bell peppers to produce a symphony of flavors in one's mouth. Add some hot rice to that and what more could you want??

I think that this would be even more delicious with shrimp. If you don't do meat, then by all means try it with tofu. I'm sure the results would be fabulous!!



Ingredients:

Boneless chicken breast - 1, diced into bite sized pieces
Red onion - 2 small, coarsely chopped
Red bell pepper - 1 medium, chopped into large dice
Green bell pepper - 1 medium, chopped into large dice
Mango (ripe) - 1 medium, chopped
Garlic - 3 cloves, grated
Ginger - 2 inch piece, grated
Green chillies - 6-8, or to taste, chopped
Soy sauce - to taste
Rice vinegar - 2 tsp or to taste
Cornstarch - 1 tsp
Scallions - 2 stalks, chopped for garnish

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken with soy sauce to taste, cornstarch, and half of the grated garlic and ginger for 15 - 30 minutes.

2. Heat oil in a pan. When hot, add the marinated chicken and fry on high heat for 1-2 minutes until the chicken becomes slightly golden, but is still not cooked through. Remove from the pan.

3. Now, add the bell peppers and onions to the same pan. Saute until the veggies start to become slightly tender yet crisp.

4. Add the green chillies along with the remaining ginger and garlic. Fry until the raw smell disappears, about 2-3 minutes.

5. At this point, the sauteed chicken gets added back to the pan along with soy sauce to taste, rice vinegar and 1/2 cup of water. Allow to simmer for 3-4 minutes for the flavors to infuse. If the sauce seems to thick to you, add some more water. Alternatively, if you want it thicker, add another 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of cornstarch dissolved in 2 tbsp of water and simmer for 2 minutes for it to thicken up.

6. Now, add in the chopped mangoes and stir for another 30 seconds or so. Turn off the heat. Garnish with scallions and serve with hot rice. Enjoy!!

We loved this dish and so I'm sending it off to Meeta for this month's monthly mingle with the theme of Mango Mania!!

32 comments:

Cham said...

Gal what a pretty color combo u ve in one plate :) Sure an eyecatching and flavorful plate you are serving.... Beautiful entry!

Sum Raj said...

gr8t combo mamngo with chicken..both my fav...wooo looks delicious kalai..

bha said...

there is mango chicken on JZ's blog as well....loved the color.....not a mango fan

@the_whisk_affair said...

woohooo!! what a coincidence! and urs look much much better!! loved it! :-)

indosungod said...

Love the colors of the dish. You are right Mangoes with Shrimp is make a very tasty dish. I am sure the chicken combo you have there is equally tasty.

Medhaa said...

love the idea. Very colorful too. this fits chinese cusine too.

Seema said...

Thats a nice combo! Looks nice.
Have a surprise for u on my blog dear friend :-)

Sagari said...

chicken looks very colorfull,nice recipe

Laavanya said...

This is the 2nd chicken & mango dish I'm seeing today.. looks like a neat combo.. i ought to try with tofu. What is the brand of mangoes that you got? I always have rotten luck with the mangoes I pick so am always on the lookout for good ones.

amna said...

lovely idea :)

Sujatha said...

Wow, another Mango chicken :) I just saw a post from JZ.. I am now too tempted to make it.. I've some chicken in my fridge and mangoes as well.. Will try it soon :)

Srivalli said...

Kalai, that sounds terrific..seriously..though I can't imagine of cooking with ripe mango...one I will finish it before it can even get into a dish, second, hubby wont' come near a sweet gravy!..but your plate looks so colourful and great..so the mango pieces are not allowed to get mashed...maybe ppl will pick out and eat ..great dish girl!

loved reading abt fish fancy in arachavetta meen kolambu!..:)

Unknown said...

Beautiful bowl kalai.Yesterday i saw a similar combo at JZ's.Somehow i missed u'r fish curry post.Loved it too.Will be trying it as S is a fish lover..

Madhavi said...

My DH love chicken, and this is very nice recipe, looks good. Will try soon for him!!!

Revathi said...

looks superb and healthy too. I have tasted this in a malaysian restaurant...

ST said...

Lovely combo looks delicious....

Pravs said...

oh what a combination. Never thought of chicken with mango. Looks delicious. Sorry for not visiting as much as before. I am back in India and not able to. Hope you are doing well.

kamala said...

Wow Kalai the plate looks so colorful..nice combo...very creative!!!

Shreya said...

really nice to use mango with chicken! looks great!

Anonymous said...

Wow...this looks delicious Kalai!

Rina said...

Wow!!!. Kalai, never tried mango and chicken...thanks for sharing.

Cynthia said...

Add some hot rice to that and what more could you want?? - nothing darling, nothing! :)

Sig said...

I've had the mango chicken and mango shrimp from the malaysian restaurant nearby, it is yum... thanks for the recipe Kalai!

Dhivya said...

hi kalai..
epdi irukeenga?am back again...
manga chicken and meen kuzhambu sema super..irundhalum enna ippadi tempt panna kodadhu:)))

Sia said...

knock knock... somebody home???

Anonymous said...

Hey where have you disappeared. hope things are fine at your end :)

Unknown said...

Interesting chicken recipe..Too inviting..

Chef Jeena said...

This is so healthy and tasty, what a great dish for summer. :-)

Laavanya said...

Hi Kalai, how are you doing? Long time - no see...

sra said...

Hi Kalai, where are you?

Srikitchen said...

come and join in the chicken event going in my blog!

Varsha Vipins said...

mango wid chicken..!!!sounds different,luks delicious..:)