Hyderabadi Chicken Majestic (चिकन माजेस्टिक)

This spicy small plate from Hyderabad loads chicken with effervescent spices and a gutsy yoghurt sauce.

A classic Hyderabadi street food, ‘chicken majestic’ is a tantilising dry chicken curry dish tossed in a tangy yoghurt sauce. It’s not considered a main dish in Hyderabad. Though substantial and packed with flavour, it’s often considered a snack or even a dish for nibbling. It’s great enjoyed cold too. Due to its location in Central India, there are small dashes of Chinese influence in this dish through historic trade with the East, so you can expect to find a nip of soy sauce in here too for extra savoury punch, or even Sichuan pepper. Feel free to deep-fry the battered chicken if preferred, however I find baking or air-frying gives comparable results as the chicken is soothed by a rich yoghurt sauce one way or another. Please eat it with your hands, or use a paratha or roti if you’re precious about it. Let’s go!

INGREDIENTS (serves 2x)

CHICKEN SEASONING

• 300g sliced boneless chicken (thighs, breast or drumstick fillets)

• 2x cloves garlic, grated

• 1x thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated

• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric

• 1/2 tsp black pepper

• 1/2 tsp chilli powder

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 tablespoons of natural yoghurt

• 1 egg yolk

• 2 tablespoons plain flour

• 2 tsps vegetable oil

MAJESTIC SAUCE

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

• 1/2 tsp ground coriander

• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric

• 1/4 tsp chilli powder

• 1/4 tsp black pepper

• 1x clove garlic, sliced

• 1cm piece of ginger, sliced

• 1x green chilli, sliced

• 6-8 curry leaves - fresh or dried - optional

• 2 tsps dark soy sauce

• 1 tablespoon chilli sauce (Indian Chilli Sauce, Sriracha) or ketchup

• 3 tablespoons of natural yoghurt

• 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste

• To serve: small handful of fresh coriander and/or mint

WALKTHROUGH

1. First let’s marinate the chicken in its yoghurt batter. Place the 300g boneless, diced chicken thighs into a bowl and add all of the chicken seasoning ingredients. Mix the chicken well until it is coated in a thick paste. Set this aside for 15 minutes.

   

   

2. Place the marinated chicken pieces onto an oven rack and bake/air-fry it at 200C for 15 minutes, turning them over halfway, until the chicken is lightly browned and cooked through. Set this aside.

   

   

3. Now we will make the majestic sauce. Place a frying pan or wok onto medium-low heat. Add the 2 tablespoons of oil followed by the 1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp ground coriander, 1/2 tsp ground turmeric, 1/4 tsp chilli powder and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Gently fry the spices for 30 seconds until foaming and fragrant.

4. Add the sliced clove of garlic, ginger, green chilli and 6-8 curry leaves, if using. Fry these ingredients on medium heat for 1 minute until softened and fragrant.

   

5. Add the 2 tsps dark soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of chilli sauce/ketchup and fry these into the sauce briefly for 30 seconds.

   

6. Turn off the heat and add the 3 tablespoons of yoghurt followed by 1/4 tsp salt. Stir the ingredients together until you form a small amount of sauce.

   

7. Add the cooked chicken into the sauce and toss until it is thinly coated. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your taste, using salt, pepper or lemon juice.

   

   

   

8. Serve the chicken at once with a skiff of coriander and/or mint, or keep it in the fridge and serve as a cold, spicy snack. Enjoy!