Karwar chicken curry-country style, served with mung dal kichidi

Karwar is a small coastal town in the state of Karnataka that played an essential role in history during the Maratha rule. It was also an important port, a fort, and a centre for trade during the Portuguese and the East India Company's rule in India. Today, it is a resort town renowned for its eco-tourism and stunning beaches.

The food of Karwar is complex and spicy! The town is situated on a delta between the ocean and the Kali River. The food is loaded with coconut, and the local Bydagi chilli is bright red and fiery. The cuisine is also characterised by a plethora of spices, including nutmeg, cardamom, poppy seeds, black peppercorns, and many more. It is complex yet in perfect harmony.

This chicken curry is no exception. Loaded with coconut (fresh and desiccated), a complex mix of spices and lots of byadgi chillies. The chicken was fall-off-the-bone tender, the curry was spicy, and the colour was a beautiful flaming red. This is a curry I can make often. As a note, you can substitute the red Kashmiri chillies for this dish. The flavour and colour are different, but it is still wonderful.

I served this with a wonderful kichadi instead of rice. I got tired of boring kichidis a few years ago and developed a few recipes. This one is made with roasted split green mung dal and brown rice, tempered with cumin seeds and a generous amount of turmeric. The mellow and flavorful kichadi perfectly complements the spicy curry.

This is a distinctive cookbook on Karwar cuisine that I adore. The food is intense and authentic, and every recipe I've cooked from it has been delicious. I have no memory of where or when I bought this cookbook, but I'm so glad it's on my shelf. I highly recommend it to those who want to master and enjoy this unique cuisine.

For more recipes from the wonderful cookbook, click here.

For the curry:

For the curry paste:

1/2 cup freshly grated coconut, frozen ok

1/4 cup desiccated powdered coconut

1 onion, thinly sliced

4-5 green chillies, sliced, or to taste

1/2 bunch cilantro, minced

1 tablespoon garlic paste

1 tablespoon ginger paste

3 tablespoons + 3 tablespoons oil

8 cloves

1 2-inch piece cinnamon stick

15 black peppercorns

4-5 green cardamom pods

1 black cardamom

12-15 whole bydagi chiles or other chillies, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

A pinch of nutmeg

For the Chicken:

2 lbs chicken, legs, thighs, breasts or any combination

1 onion, finely diced

3 tablespoons ghee

Cilantro, minced to garnish

For the khichdi:

1 cup split green mung beans, washed and drained

1 cup brown rice, washed and drained

1 onion, finely minced

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

3/4 teaspoon turmeric

3 tablespoons ghee

Salt to taste

Water, as required

To make the kichidi:

Heat the ghee in a pot or the Instant Pot and add the cumin seeds. Sauté for 30 seconds till lightly coloured. Add the turmeric and sauté for 10 seconds. Add the mung beans and sauté over medium heat until they are roasted and browned, about 3-4 minutes. They must smell aromatic. Add the rice, salt, and water (up to the first joint on your index finger), and cook as you would lentils. I cook them in the Instant Pot on the "beans" setting. The kichidi should come out sticky, and the brown rice adds a wonderful bite.

For the curry paste:

Toast the wet coconut in a dry pan on low heat until it reaches a rich brown colour. Be careful not to burn the coconut. Most grated fresh coconut is uneven in size, so the low flame allows the larger pieces to toast as well. Don’t worry if the coconut is not evenly browned. Set aside in a large bowl.

Toast the desiccated coconut as above. Add to the roasted coconut.

Add the three tablespoons of oil and fry the sliced onions till a rich brown colour. Add the chillies, ginger paste, garlic paste, and cilantro, and fry until they are well browned. Add to the roasted coconut.

On a dry frying pan, roast all the whole spices individually till lightly coloured and fragrant. Collect the roasted spices and powdered nutmeg in a separate bowl and cool. Grind to a fine powder in a coffee or spice mill. Add to the roasted coconut bowl.

Add all the ingredients to a blender with some water and purée until a very fine paste is formed. This may take some time, so be patient. You want just enough water to allow the paste to slide down the sides of the grinder, not a very watery paste. Set aside.

Add the second 3 tablespoons of oil to a small saucepan and sauté the ground spice mix over a medium-low flame until the curry paste has lost all its water and turned a beautiful red-brown colour. The oil begins to separate from the paste, approximately 15-20 minutes. Be patient; this is the critical step in this curry.

In a large pot, add the ghee and sauté the minced onions on a medium to low flame till they are browned. Add the chicken, turn the heat to medium, and sauté the chicken until browned. You may need to do this in two batches if your pot is not large enough to accommodate the entire amount. Overcrowding the pot will cause the chicken to stew rather than fry and seal. When the chicken is browned, add the spice mix, reduce the heat to low, and sauté the spices until they adhere heavily to the chicken. Be careful not to burn the spice mix.

Add enough water to cover the chicken and salt. Stir to combine the paste with the water, forming a smooth curry. Allow the curry to simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The final curry should be thin and spicy, with a layer of oil floating on top. Taste and adjust the salt according to your palate.

Serve with the kichidi. Note: I find this curry delicious but too rich. I generally make it a day ahead and refrigerate it overnight. The oil coagulates on top of the curry and can be scooped off.