Kori Kempu Bezule / Mangalore Chicken Bezule

I first tasted this dish at The Gateway Hotels – Karavalli Restaurant in Bangalore. We loved it a lot. The description of the dish was something like this. “Boneless chicken, marinated to perfection in a traditional mangalorean masala, tossed in yoghurt, green chillies and curry leaves.” It was true to every word of that description. The slight tang from the white bits of curdled yogurt and the aroma of curry leaves made this dish a winner to be remembered for a long time. Here is my adapted recipe for Karavalli style Kori Kempu Bezule / Mangalore Chicken Bezule. I adapted this recipe from The Best of Indian Cooking (A Selection of Recipes From the Taj Group of Hotels)

Click the link below to find the recipes on the site that uses the main ingredient as Chicken.
Chicken Recipes

Here are some of the equipment, utensils and gadgets that will be useful for making this recipe. Click the link to buy them online.
Polypropylene Chopping Board
Teakwood Chopping Board
Silicone Spatula
High-End Nakiri Knife
Glass Mixing Bowls (500 ml)
Glass Mixing Bowl
Byadagi Red Chillies (Karnataka Chillies)
Indian Mixie
Slotted Deep Fry Spatula

Here is the video of how to do chicken bezule / Mangalore style chicken bezule

The important ingredient in this recipe is the dried red chillies. Its the Karnataka Byadagi chillies. BAY-DIG-GAY as its pronounced, Byadagi Chillies come from the Haveri district in Karnataka. The chilli is long and wrinkled and deeply red. Its not very hot but imparts a dark color and aroma. Its not a very spicy variety of chilli. So if you can get Byadagi chillies, its good. Else you can use Kashmiri chillies.

Boil the dried red chillies in a cup of water for 10 minutes. Drain the water and set aside. Take a small mixie jar and add in the boiled and drained chillies, turmeric powder, salt and the garlic cloves. Add an egg to the mixture. Make it into a fine paste. Set aside.

Take 3 boneless chicken breasts and cut into 2 inch strips. Take a bowl and add in the corn flour and maida (all purpose flour). Add the chicken strips and the ground masala. Mix well to coat evenly. Let the chicken marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature. Set aside.

Heat oil in a pan until hot. Add the marinated chicken strips to the oil. Here are some points to note while frying chicken so the chicken doesn’t become hard.
# Do not fry chicken in really super hot oil. Let the flame be at medium high at all times. Frying in really hot smoking oil makes the chicken hard and rubbery.
# Do not crowd the pan. Add only as much the pan will hold without crowding.
# Boneless chicken breast cooks fast after marination. Once the bubbles in the oil subside, its an indication that the chicken is done. Remove and drain on paper towels. Continuing to cook the chicken even after the bubbles have mostly subsided will give you hard chicken. Some bubbles will remain and that’s fine.
# It took not more than 2 minutes for me for each batch of chicken. Take a chicken strip from oil and break it into two. If the meat is white inside, its done. Do not over cook the meat.
Here is a picture where the bubbles in the oil subside. When most of the bubbles have gone, remove the chicken strips from oil. Set aside.

Now we will toss the chicken in yogurt sauce. This is what transforms the chicken into an awesome dish.
Take 2 teaspoon of oil in a pan. I used the same oil used for frying chicken. Add in the curry leaves. Add lots of curry leaves. The aroma of curry leaves is very important for this recipe. Add chopped green chillies. Add more if you want a spicy chicken bezule. Add in the yogurt and saute for a minute. The yogurt will curdle and that’s what we want.

Add in the fried chicken pieces to the curdled yogurt sauce and briefly toss to coat. Remove off heat and serve kori kempu bezule, hotel karavalli style.

Kori Kempu Bezule / Mangalore Chicken Bezule

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5 from 4 reviews

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Mangalorean style Kori Kempu Bezule. Boneless chicken, marinated to perfection in a traditional mangalorean masala, tossed in yoghurt, green chillies and curry leaves.

• Total Time: 50 mins
• Yield: 4 persons 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the masala paste

• 6 byadagi dried red chillies
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 10 cloves garlic
• 1 egg

For the marinade

• 1/4 cup corn flour (corn starch)
• 2 tablespoon maida (all purpose flour)

For the Sauce

• 2 teaspoon oil (I used oil that was used for frying)
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 4 sprigs curry leaves
• 4 green chillies, chopped

Other Ingredients

• 3 chicken breasts, cut into strips
• 500 ml vegetable/sunflower oil for deep frying

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Instructions

1. Boil the dried red chillies in a cup of water for 10 minutes. Drain the water and set aside. Take a small mixie jar and add in the boiled and drained chillies, turmeric powder, salt and the garlic cloves. Add an egg to the mixture. Make it into a fine paste. Set aside.
2. Take 3 boneless chicken breasts and cut into 2 inch strips. Take a bowl and add in the corn flour and maida (all purpose flour). Add the chicken strips and the ground masala. Mix well to coat evenly. Let the chicken marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature. Set aside.
3. Heat oil in a pan until hot. Add the marinated chicken strips to the oil. Cook till done. Set aside
4. Take 2 teaspoon of oil in a pan. I used the same oil used for frying chicken. Add in the curry leaves and green chillies. Add lots of curry leaves. Add in the yogurt and saute for a minute. The yogurt will curdle.
5. Add in the fried chicken pieces to the curdled yogurt sauce and briefly toss to coat. Remove off heat and serve warm.

• Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Category: Appetizer
• Cuisine: Mangalorean, South India