Madame Rajambal's Garlic Chicken

Preeta Samarasan's Madame Rajambal has more to share...

Photo credit: Doogie Roux

I cooked up this dish when my children were small. Where I had time to follow elaborate recipes in those days. Cooking books were for seeing the pretty pictures only. Lunch had to be ready before everybody came home, so it was usually whatever I could make chinchai-style, no measuring no weighing no carving tomatoes into swans. By the time you have been cooking for a family for ten, fifteen years, you know how to produce something fast but with a sure hand. I still remember that the first time I served this creation my younger son said, Wah, Amma, looks like an Italian dish! The boy had never laid eyes on Italian cooking in his life. None of us had. I shot back, As if! Those Italian chefs would count themselves lucky if they could come up with a masterpiece like this! Then we all laughed because in those days one took it for granted that everything European was more posh. Now that pizza and pasta are all over the place I don’t think my joke is that funny anymore, hahaha! Well. Let me not be rude. One man’s meat is another man’s poison, that’s all there is to it. But I do hope you’ll try this dish.¹

The measurements are all agak-agak but you can adjust to your taste. Unlike most of the things that came out of my kitchen, it is nice-looking enough to be in a cookery book. That lovely golden colour and the coriander leaves – but you must have plenty of nice fresh coriander leaves for this. Otherwise don’t bother. —Madame Rajambal

P.S. For more from Madam Rajambal, you won’t want to miss Preeta Samarasan’s “Object Permanence 1: Nappy Pail,” the first in the series and a FED exclusive. And to learn more about Preeta and and FED’s entire Spring 2024 all-star line-up of musicians, artists, writers, growers, gleaners, cooks, and craftspeople headed your way this season, check out Special Guests.

Garlic Chicken, a favourite recipe from Madam Rajambal

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken cut up into small pieces (don’t try to be a vellakaran and remove skin and bones!)

• ½ large cup chopped fresh coriander leaves

• 1-2 tbsp. fresh lime or lemon juice

• 7 cloves garlic

• 2 ½ tsp. salt

• 2 ½ tbsp. black pepper

• 1 tsp. cumin seeds, roasted in a dry pan

• ½ – 1 tsp. turmeric

Method

1. Rub the chicken pieces with the turmeric and salt and leave to marinate

2. Crush the pepper with the roasted cumin using a mortar and pestle

3. Gently bruise the garlic with the pestle, then mince it

4. Lightly boil the chicken with ½ – 1 cup water (just enough water so that it does not stick). When it is ¾ cooked, remove it from the stove. Let it cool a bit. Then put in the crushed pepper and cumin. Mix it well.

5. Now heat 1 -2 tbsp. oil in a pan. When the oil is hot, toss in the chicken and fry over low-medium head while stirring. When chicken is fully cooked, turn off the flame. Stir in the chopped coriander leaves and the lime or lemon juice and serve with hot white rice and a vegetable.

1. And, oh, lovely Vegans & Vegetarians, please do not despair. We will soon have something you needn’t modify to enjoy—stay tuned, for example, for Sahana Murthy’s upcoming Ayurvedic treats from Rasayana Mysore Kitchen. In the meanwhile, Madame Rajambal’s creation seems perfect for modifying with seitan, tofu, or tempeh if chicken’s not your thing. Let us know how that goes…we can’t wait to hear! —FED editor