Recipe for Chicken Salna Madurai style. Spicy Salna – Perfect side dish for Parotta and Dosai. Recipe with step by step pictures.
Parotta with Salna is a comfort food for a lot of us Tamilians. Salna is nothing but a thin gravy usually made with meat stock. The crispy and fluffy parottas dunked in salna is what food dreams are made up of for a lot of us Tamilians. Usually in restaurants, its made with stock and a ground paste of cashew or peanuts or both. While the meat is used in thicker gravies and fried chicken etc… the stock from the bones is used to make salna. The history states that the dish must have originated from Hyderabadi Mirchi ka Salan that is made with peanuts and chillies. But there is nothing common between the two except for the peanut paste used to thicken the gravy. Here is my version of Chicken Salna. It goes perfectly well with Parottas, Dosai and idli.
First let us make a paste for the salna. Here is what you will need for the masala paste for making salna.
Heat oil in a pan and add in the dry spices, ginger and the garlic. Roast the spices on a low flame till they are slightly brown and fragrant. Add in the coconut and peanuts. Roast for a minute. Remove the roasted ingredients from heat and set aside to cool.
Once the ingredients are cool, add in a little water and grind to a smooth paste. Set aside.
Heat oil in a pan ( I use a pressure pan) and add in the sliced shallots and the curry leaves. Add in the salt. Saute for a few minutes till the shallots are soft.
Add in a chopped tomato and saute till the tomatoes are cooked and juiced down.
Add in a teaspoon of Kuzhambu milgai thool and half teaspoon of turmeric powder. Kuzhambu milagai thool is a spice blend used in South Indian kitchen. If you do not have access to Kuzhambu milagai thool, substitute it with curry powder.
Add in the chicken pieces and toss the chicken to coat.
Add in the chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves. Add in the ground paste.
Wash the mixie with a cup of water and add it back to the pan. Add in another cup of water to dilute the gravy.
Cover the cooker and cook for about four whistles (about 10-12 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Allow the pressure from the cooker to release naturally. Simple salna is ready.
Serve with Parotta. Here is the recipe for parotta.
- ¼ cup fresh coconut
- 2 tablespoon peanuts
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 3 cardamom
- ½ inch piece cinnamon
- ½ inch piece ginger
- 8 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoon peanut oil
- 10 shallots, sliced
- 2 sprigs curry leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 1 teaspoon kuzhambu milagai thool (or) curry powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 3 sprigs mint leaves
- 3 sprigs coriander leaves
- 500 grams chicken in bone
- Heat oil in a pan and add in the dry spices, ginger and the garlic. Roast the spices on a low flame till they are slightly brown and fragrant. Add in the coconut and peanuts. Roast for a minute. Remove the roasted ingredients from heat and set aside to cool.
- Once the ingredients are cool, add in a little water and grind to a smooth paste. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a pan ( I use a pressure pan) and add in the sliced shallots and the curry leaves. Add in the salt. Saute for a few minutes till the shallots are soft.
- Add in a chopped tomato and saute till the tomatoes are cooked and juiced down.
- Add in a teaspoon of Kuzhambu milgai thool and half teaspoon of turmeric powder. Kuzhambu milagai thool is a spice blend used in South Indian kitchen. If you do not have access to Kuzhambu milagai thool, substitute it with curry powder.
- Add in the chicken pieces and toss the chicken to coat.
- Add in the chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves. Add in the ground paste.
- Wash the mixie with a cup of water and add it back to the pan. Add in another cup of water to dilute the gravy.
- Cover the cooker and cook for about four whistles (about 10-12 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Allow the pressure from the cooker to release naturally. Simple salna is ready.
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