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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!!
Voting for Open Sesame 2 has started today. If you liked my baklava buns, please vote for me by clicking here and logging in. Thanks in advance for your support!I've probably mentioned before that fish addiction runs in my family. Let me give you an example... My grandfather would go fishing late at night at a lake in our village. I'm told that he would tell my grandmother to grind the masala and keep everything ready for when he got back. As soon as he returned with the live fish, she would quickly prepare the fish gravy. He HAD to eat it before he'd be able to get some peaceful sleep.
My mother and amayee (my maternal grandmother) both start drooling the second they set their eyes on fish. I wasn't a huge fan of fish as a child, but I think the fish bug has bit me too! I often find myself in a fix getting a really strong fish craving only to run to the fish market, buy some really good fish, make some fish kuzhambu and proceed to devour it!
This recipe is one that always hits the spot! It's inspired by a recipe that I saw on the internet long before I started this blog. I quickly scribbled down some of the points and didn't record the website. So, I apologize for not being able to give that person credit.
The awesome thing about this recipe is that you grind all of the required masala. Seasoning is done with onions and garlic. The fish is then cooked in the ground masala and tamarind. It's really delicious without the addition of any coconut (if you're concerned about that)!
Also, if you have any reservations about your fish (i.e. you're not sure it's the best), this is the recipe to go with! The combo of the fennel flavor with black pepper, green chillies, and garlic is really special and will help to overcome any possible fishy aroma you may be concerned about. Without any further ado, let me get to the recipe!
Ingredients:
Fish - approx 2 lbs, cleaned, cut into thin slices
Tamarind - small key lime size, soaked in water, and juice extracted
Shallots - 2 medium, sliced finely
Garlic - 3 cloves, chopped finely
To grind into paste:
Shallots - 1 medium
Tomato - 1 medium
Black peppercorns - 1/2 tsp
Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 3-4, or to taste
Curry leaves - 6-8 (optional)
Chilli powder - 2 tsp, or to taste
Coriander powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
For seasoning:
Oil (recommended: sesame oil)
Methi seeds/vendheyam - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 10
Method:
1. Wash the fish in water with turmeric powder and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan. When hot, add the seasoning ingredients. Once the methi seeds have browned and spluttered a little, add the sliced shallots.
3. Fry the shallots until softened. Then, add the chopped garlic and fry until fragrant.
4. Pour in the ground masala, tamarind extract, and required salt. Allow to boil until thickened to desired consistency. Note: Make this a little thicker than your ideal gravy consistency as the fish will cause the gravy to loosen once it's added!
5. Now, gently place the fish pieces in the gravy. Do not mix with a spoon at this stage. Just pick up the pot by the handles and gently swirl the gravy over and around the fish. Allow to simmer until the fish is cooked, about 5-6 minutes. Turn off and enjoy with hot steaming rice!
This delicious bowl of meen kuzhambu is on its way to dear Sig who is hosting JFI tamarind this month. Hope she enjoys it as much as we did!
