Achari Chicken Curry Recipe (Chicken With Pickling Spices)
Achari Chicken Curry is a North Indian-style curry flavored with pickling spices (achar masala). It goes great with Indian bread or rice dishes. Make it in a pan over the stovetop or in an instant pot.
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- 2 pounds skinless, bone-in chicken 1 kg, cut into 1 and ½ inch pieces and rinsed
- 5 tablespoons mustard oil or any other cooking oil
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds (methi dana)
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
- ½ teaspoon brown mustard seeds (sarson)
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
- ¼ teaspoon nigella seeds (kalonji, onion seeds)
- 2 cups thinly sliced onions
- 2 teaspoons ginger garlic paste
- ¼ cup tomato paste or ½ cup canned tomato puree or 1 cup pureed fresh tomatoes
- 3 tablespoons achari masala spice mix
- 2 teaspoons salt or to taste
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- 1 cup plain yogurt (dahi)
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour (maida)
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon masala from pickle I generally use the masala from the ready mango pickle.
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (fresh coriander leaves) for garnishing
Instructions
- Heat mustard oil in a large, heavy-bottom pan over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add fenugreek seeds, fennel seeds, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and nigella seeds, and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
- Add onions and cook until they turn slightly brown (6-8 minutes). Stir frequently at regular intervals.
- Add ginger-garlic paste and cook until onions turn golden brown (4-5 minutes).
- Rinse chicken pieces and add them to the pan. Cook on high heat for 3-4 minutes.
- Reduce the heat to low.
- Add tomato paste, salt, and achari masala spice mix along with ½ cup of water and mix everything well. Cook for 4-5 mins, stirring frequently.
- Add Kashmiri red chili powder and yogurt whisked with all-purpose flour to the pan.
- Cover the pan with a lid and cook on low heat until the chicken is tender. It will take 40-45 minutes for the chicken to cook perfectly. Stir a few times while cooking.
- Add lime juice and masala from the ready-made pickle. I generally use the masala from the ready mango pickle. Mix everything well.
- Check for salt and add more if needed.
- Achari chicken is ready. Garnish the curry with chopped cilantro. Serve hot with phulka or steamed rice.
Video
Notes
You can also use boneless chicken breast or thighs if you don’t like chicken with bones. Reduce the cooking time as the boneless chicken pieces cook much faster.
Instant pot and traditional stovetop pressure cooker recipe is mentioned in the post.
Nutrition
Calories: 408kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 137mg | Sodium: 1455mg | Potassium: 737mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 498IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 119mg | Iron: 2mg
