OK, this doesn't have any curry leaves, but I just made it recently, and really enjoyed it.

Hyderabadi Spicy Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

  a.. 2 lbs chicken legs and/or thighs 

  b.. 2 T vegetable oil or ghee (clarified butter) 

  c.. 1/2 medium white onion, chopped 

  d.. 4 green chilies, sliced (serranos recommended, but may substitute other green chilies) 

  e.. 4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped 

  f.. 1 T fresh tender ginger, chopped finely 

  g.. 1/4 t ground cinnamon, or equivalent piece of cinnamon stick 

  h.. 3 whole cloves (or equivalent crushed or ground cloves) 

  i.. 1 or 2 T garam masala 

  j.. about 1 cup plain yoghurt or buttermilk (use half for cooking, and half as a condiment) 

  k.. salt, to taste (about 1/2 tsp) 

Preparation:

Add the oil to frying pan (or balti) over medium heat.  Stir in the onion, chilies, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and garam masala.

Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 3 to 5 minutes, until onion and chilies are soft. 

Add the chicken to the pan.  Stir to coat chicken pieces with the spicy mixture.  Fry until chicken is cooked through, turning as each side becomes browned.  (Estimated frying time:  30 minutes.)  Note:  To reduce chicken cooking time, you may cover the pan or balti while frying the chicken, but reduce the heat accordingly. 

After chicken is cooked, stir in 1/2 cup plain yoghurt or buttermilk and salt to taste. 

Serve with long grain white rice (regular or Basmati,) and the remaining plain yoghurt (or buttermilk)

Judy Bolton wrote:


> Preparation:
> 
> Add the oil to frying pan (or balti) over medium heat.  Stir in the 
> onion, chilies, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and garam masala.

Should the ground spices (garam masala) as well as whole spice go 
together at this time?

> After chicken is cooked, stir in 1/2 cup plain yoghurt or buttermilk and 
> salt to taste. 

Wouldn't the yogurt/buttermilk reduce the *spiciness*?

> Serve with long grain white rice (regular or Basmati,) and the remaining 
> plain yoghurt (or buttermilk) 
> 

Venkat

"none" <""venkat\"@(none)"> wrote in message 
news:46cc9cb3$0$16505$4c368faf@roadrunner.com...
> Judy Bolton wrote:
>
>
>> Preparation:
>>
>> Add the oil to frying pan (or balti) over medium heat.  Stir in the 
>> onion, chilies, garlic, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and garam masala.
>
> Should the ground spices (garam masala) as well as whole spice go together 
> at this time?
>
>> After chicken is cooked, stir in 1/2 cup plain yoghurt or buttermilk and 
>> salt to taste.
>
> Wouldn't the yogurt/buttermilk reduce the *spiciness*?
>
>> Serve with long grain white rice (regular or Basmati,) and the remaining 
>> plain yoghurt (or buttermilk)
>
> Venkat

Venkat,

It does seem odd to me that the garam masala goes in at this time, but yes, 
it does.  At least, that is what the recipe told me!  :)

The buttermilk/yoghurt barely reduces the heat, and gives it a really nice 
texture.  BUT... the rest of the yoghurt is nice to eat along with the meal, 
and does help reduce the heat when eaten that way.  But, you could leave out 
the yoghurt (the part that gets added in to the recipe) completely if that 
suits you.

It really was quite tasty.

Judy B - Rochester, NY, USA

On 23 Aug, 23:39, "Venkat" <venkat@> wrote:
> "Judy Bolton"  wrote in
>
> > Venkat,
>
> > It does seem odd to me that the garam masala goes in at this time, but
> > yes, it does.  At least, that is what the recipe told me!  :)
> > The buttermilk/yoghurt barely reduces the heat, and gives it a really nice
> > texture.  BUT... the rest of the yoghurt is nice to eat along with the
> > meal, and does help reduce the heat when eaten that way.  But, you could
> > leave out the yoghurt (the part that gets added in to the recipe)
> > completely if that suits you.
>
> Judy
> I am surprised people are getting to know Indian foods other than the
> typical restaurant fare. :-) Hyderabadi (and Andhra/Telugu) food is spicy
> even for Indians from other places.
> I was asking about yogurt and mixing/order of spices because typically
> Hyderabadi recipes do not use yogurt (unlike Panjabi recipes). Also,
> typically Hyderabadi recipes use whole spices at the start and ground spices
> towards the end of preperation.
> There is nothing wrong in  adding ground spices in the beginning or adding
> yogurt.
>
> -Venkat

I think Judy's recipe must be a variation, I don't remember garam
masala being used at all, although if it had, I would agree adding
whole spice at the beginning with the onions would be the way I would
go. If adding gm in powder form, then it would have to be added later,
to reduce the likelihood of burning. The addition of yoghurt in this
recipe is traditional, though not to make a 'gravy', as the dish is
heated to drive off the water from the yoghurt to leave the 'fried
chicken' with a coating of glaze.
It is interesting to see a raised eyebrow with regard to adding gm
anywhere but at the end. However, adding the mix at the end is a
recent fad (probably instigated by non-desi-Indians), the original
intention would be to add it at the beginning to extract the flavour
into the oil/ghee, but originally there were no filler spices, like
coriander and cumin, just cassia, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg/mace,
and black pepper if you didn't grate it in separately.
cheers
Waaza

"wazza"  wrote
> I think Judy's recipe must be a variation, I don't remember garam
> masala being used at all, although if it had, I would agree adding
> whole spice at the beginning with the onions would be the way I would
> go. If adding gm in powder form, then it would have to be added later,
> to reduce the likelihood of burning.

Yes, garam masala is added only at the end, if it is added in south Indian 
foods.

> The addition of yoghurt in this recipe is traditional, though not to
> make a 'gravy', as the dish is heated to drive off the water from
> the yoghurt to leave the 'fried chicken' with a coating of glaze.

I think so. It probably is modified to make it mild enough for others ;-). 
Because, Hyderabadi chicken/lamb dishes are usully eaten with raita (which 
is hot/spicy itself).

> It is interesting to see a raised eyebrow with regard to adding gm
> anywhere but at the end. However, adding the mix at the end is a
> recent fad (probably instigated by non-desi-Indians), the original
> intention would be to add it at the beginning to extract the flavour
> into the oil/ghee, but originally there were no filler spices, like
> coriander and cumin, just cassia, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg/mace,
> and black pepper if you didn't grate it in separately.

Who are non-desi-Indians? You mean people not from subcontinent but having 
Indian ancestry?

-Venkat

"Venkat" <venkat@> wrote in message 
news:46ce0c96$0$18987$4c368faf@roadrunner.com...
>
> "Judy Bolton"  wrote in
>> Venkat,
>>
>> It does seem odd to me that the garam masala goes in at this time, but 
>> yes, it does.  At least, that is what the recipe told me!  :)
>> The buttermilk/yoghurt barely reduces the heat, and gives it a really 
>> nice texture.  BUT... the rest of the yoghurt is nice to eat along with 
>> the meal, and does help reduce the heat when eaten that way.  But, you 
>> could leave out the yoghurt (the part that gets added in to the recipe) 
>> completely if that suits you.
>
> Judy
> I am surprised people are getting to know Indian foods other than the 
> typical restaurant fare. :-) Hyderabadi (and Andhra/Telugu) food is spicy 
> even for Indians from other places.
> I was asking about yogurt and mixing/order of spices because typically 
> Hyderabadi recipes do not use yogurt (unlike Panjabi recipes). Also, 
> typically Hyderabadi recipes use whole spices at the start and ground 
> spices towards the end of preperation.
> There is nothing wrong in  adding ground spices in the beginning or adding 
> yogurt.
>
> -Venkat
>
>

Venkat, yes, I am definitely into *regional* cooking of India, and have 
tried to look at all the different styles.  I like everything, of course, 
but really am focusing on the cuisines of Maharashtra and Andra-Pradesh 
currently, and am trying to learn the recipes and cooking methods of these 
two cuisines.  That said, I just got a new cookbook dedicated to Punjabi 
cuisine, although a few months back I got an excellent Andhra cookbook - 
Cooking at Home with Pedatha by Jigyasa Giri and Pratibha Jain.

From what I understand, Andhra cooking is THE hottest of them all... which 
is very much appreciated around my house (OK, fine, I admit, we tone it down 
a little).  :)

One thing I wanted to bounce off of you is this:  Hyderabadi cooking is 
supposed to differ from the rest of the region due to the Moslem influence 
brought there by the Moghuls (specifically by Aurangzeb, if I am not 
mistaken?), which might be why we see the use of ingredients - well, HOW 
they are used, I should say - which seem to be more common in Northern India 
and even Persia.  Does this ring true to you, from what you know?  Or maybe 
Wazza knows?

I saw Wazza's comments, and yes, the yoghurt absolutely cooks down and 
creates a very, very thick sauce, if you can even call it that, which clings 
to the meat.  It is not a creamy dish.

Have a great weekend!  Thanks for the great discussion.

Judy B - Rochester, NY, USA