This is a mild, creamy stew made with coconut milk, spices, and tender chicken, typically served with appam (a lacy rice pancake). It’s a popular dinner dish in Kerala, South India, known for its comforting flavors.
Kerala chicken stew with appam
Ingredients
For the Masala Paste
For the Chicken Stew
For the Appam
Instructions
For chicken Prepare the Masala Powder
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Toast the cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and fennel seeds in a dry pan until fragrant. Let them cool, then grind into a fine powder.
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Heat coconut oil in a pot, add curry leaves and sliced onions. Sauté until onions are soft.
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Add ginger-garlic paste and green chilies. Sauté for a minute.
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Add chicken pieces and cook until lightly browned.
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Mix in the ground masala powder, potato, and carrot.
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Pour in the thin coconut milk, bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes, until the chicken and veggies are tender.
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Add thick coconut milk and simmer for 5 more minutes. Season with salt.
For appam Prepare the Batter:
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Blend the soaked raw rice, cooked rice, and grated coconut with a little water until smooth.
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Dissolve sugar in warm water, sprinkle in yeast, and let it froth (5-10 mins).
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Add the yeast mixture to the batter with salt, mix, and ferment for 6-8 hours or overnight.
Cook the Appam
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Heat a non-stick or cast iron appam pan on medium. Lightly grease it if needed.
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Pour a ladle of batter in the center, then swirl the pan to spread it thin around the edges, leaving the center thicker.
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Cover and cook for 2-3 minutes until the edges are crispy and the center is soft. No need to flip.
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Remove and repeat.
Note
- Adjust coconut milk consistency by adding more or less based on your preference. Thin coconut milk is best for cooking, while thick coconut milk adds final richness.
- Use warm water for fermentation for appam, especially in cooler temperatures, and try adding a small amount of sugar if you prefer a slightly sweeter appam.
- Serve the hot stew with appam to soak up all the flavors.