This recipe can be prepared with paneer or cauliflower, instead of chicken. Modification options are noted where they apply.

Ingredients

For the marinade

• ½ kg boneless chicken (or ½ kg paneer cubes, or 1 medium cauliflower, cut into small florets with a bit of stem)
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste (1 tsp if using paneer or cauliflower)
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup yogurt
• ½ tsp black pepper powder (alternatively, garam masala)
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• ¼ tsp salt

For frying

• 1½ cup corn flour
• ½ cup all purpose flour (maida) (alternatively, rice flour)
• 1 egg (alternatively, yogurt)

For the sauce

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• ½ tsp red chili powder
• ¼ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ cup yoghurt (alternatively, 1 tsp white vinegar diluted in water)
• 10 cloves of garlic, lightly smashed
• 8-10 green chillies, slit and de-seeded
• Curry leaves (kari patta)
• A pinch of sugar
• Salt, to taste

Directions

Chicken

Marinate the chicken (or paneer or cauliflower) in marinade ingredients. Keep aside for at least 1 hour, preferably longer.

Take corn flour and maida (or rice flour) and mix well with using as little water as possible to make a thick mixture. Add 1 egg or yoghurt (better and lasting taste comes from yoghurt. Eggs can smell if the marinade is kept for long or the fried pieces are kept for long time).

Heat oil in a pan on medium, make sure the oil does not start burning. Add the marinated pieces and fry deep fry till golden brown (shiny brown and not dark brown). Drain on a kitchen towel or napkin and keep aside.

You can serve these as is (without the sauce) with onion rings and lemon wedges.

Sauce

In a pan take 2 tbsp oil and add 1 tsp ginger garlic paste, ½ tsp red chili powder, salt, a pinch of sugar and ½ cup yoghurt (or diluted vinegar) and cook until the raw smell of ginger-garlic paste is gone and all ingredients are mixed well. Water can be added to maintain consistency. We should have a thickish sauce ready now. Drain oil and keep aside. Put away the sauce.

In the oil saved above (should be about 1½ tbsp) lightly roast the garlic then add ¼ tsp cumin seeds, green chillies and curry leaves. When the curry leaves turn crisp add the sauce made and kept aside to cook, mix and thicken a little bit more.

Assembly

Add the fried pieces to the sauce and sauté a little bit. Coat over the pieces and thicken, remove and serve with lemon wedges.

Option:
Instead of making the sauce after getting the crisp curry leaves add garlic paste, red chilly powder, salt, sugar, vinegar with water / yoghurt and make a sauce, then add the fried pieces and toss and serve.

Tips

Best way to test oil for frying is to drop a bit of marinade batter, it must rise quickly without getting brown colour.

Best check for chicken while frying is to see the water bubbles reduce on oil that happens when the chicken starts getting tender and cooked.

Clean cauliflower florets and add them to hot water (not very hot or boiling). Let it rest for 5 minutes, wash thoroughly, drain and keep aside.

The use of vinegar or yoghurt depends on the region. Vinegar if used should always be diluted in the ratio of 1 to 10 parts of water.

Family Secret

Sugar is used to kill the pungent smell of garlic.