Hakka Style Chili Chicken

Recently my Goan friend, and fellow foodie Neil came out for a visit. He arrived clutching a giant bag of fresh and robust green chilies, which are hard to find in any quantity during the winter and thus; are carefully transported from city to city and kept in the freezer ready for such occasions. Neil is an avid cook and proficient in not only Goan fare, but a variety of regional specialties as well. One of them is Hakka or Indo-Chinese food which can be readily found in Bombay and the surrounding Maharashtrian state. I shared with my good friend how I enjoyed a most deliciously spicy Chili Chicken while I was in India, and longed to taste it again. Without further delay we were off to the supermarket to purchase fresh chicken, green onions and Chinese noodles. The green chilies were ready to be put to good use.

I watched as Neil took command of my kitchen, producing mouthwatering textures and aromas. To the best of my observation, this is what he did:

First; break off dried Chinese noodles into a pot of boiling water, cook, drain and set aside. 

Finely chop an entire clove of garlic, a large thumb of fresh ginger,  4-5 green onions and a handful of fresh coriander leaf (cilantro). Set aside.

Wash and cube two large chicken breasts or 4-5 chicken thighs.

Laterally cut 5 green chilies, (3 if you're a lightweight. We did six and it was pretty hot!)

Here is Neil explaining something to me about the difference between using all-purpose flour versus corn flour or sooji for deep frying. In the case of veg-cutlets I use sooji because it doesn't soak up the oil, however Neil explained that all-purpose flour produces a coating on the chicken that better soaks up the flavours of the gravy.

Neil created a thick batter out of two eggs and flour. Here he is dipping the chicken pieces into

the batter and prefrying them in oil over medium heat. 

  While the chicken pieces are frying, mix approximately two tablespoons of cornstarch in two cups of hot water, add 1/8 cup of soy sauce and mix well.  When chicken is cooked and a good coating has formed on the exterior, place drained pieces into a bowl and set aside.

If needed add additional oil to your pan and fry the ginger and garlic. Do not let it burn. Add the chopped green chilies and saute. As aromas are released, add the chicken pieces and stir well. Slowly add corn starch mixture and stir as it thickens. If it becomes too thick add more water. Stir in chopped green onions, remove from heat and garnish with fresh coriander leaf. This delicious dish can be served on a bed of Chinese noodles, or in our case, stir-fried veg noodles, (which I will post later).   Enjoy!