Chicken xacuti is a spicy Goan delicacy packed with unique flavour. Due to my love of coconut cultivated by my homeland, I tend to serve Goan cuisine quite often. It is quite similar to Kerala and Mangalorean cuisine, with coconut being a star ingredient.
Amongst the many dishes that Goan cuisine boasts of, chicken xacuti is one of my personal favourites. It is a very rich dish, that has a unique taste. It is sure to be a standout when you serve it, and tends to appeal to everyone’s palate. You can also check out the recipe for chicken vindaloo, another Goan delicacy.
How to prepare in 3 steps
- Marinate chicken
- Prepare xacuti paste
- Fry onions and chicken and cook with xacuti paste and tamarind paste
What to serve with chicken xacuti
This versatile dish an be served with neer dosa, ghee rice, appam, roti, naan or any type of Indian bread to make up a delicious main course.
Check out the video here.
Spicy Chicken Xacuti Curry
Ingredients
Xacuti masala paste
Curry Base
Instructions
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Wash and pat dry chicken. Rub with salt, turmeric, pepper powder, Kashmiri chilli powder and oil. Keep it aside for a minimum of 15 minutes.
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Heat a heavy bottom pan, add 1 tbsp of oil. Add chopped onions, saute until light brown. Keep aside.
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In the same pan, now add coconut and fry on medium flame until golden brown. Keep aside.
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Now dry roast the rest of the spices mentioned under xacuti paste. Heat the spices until warm and it releases the oil and aroma. Keep aside.
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Grind the spices along with sauteed onions and fried coconut to a fine paste.
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Now heat the pan, add few tbsp of oil, add chopped onion. Saute until it starts to change colour. Add marinated chicken and toss on high flame until its browned.
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Now add ground xacuti paste and fry for 8-10 minutes.
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Now add water or fresh chicken stock. Soak tamarind in water for 10 minutes. Squeeze tamarind and strain and add the tamarind water.
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Simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook covered until chicken is tender and has absorbed all the flavours.
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Adjust salt and add more water if needed. Rest for 10 minutes and serve warm.
Note
Xacuti paste - Can be prepared ahead and stored in the fridge in a a clean and dry jar for upto 3 days.
Fresh chicken stock - Adds more flavour to the curry base. Add no more than 1 cup to the curry base. If you need more gravy, add water.
Chicken - Chicken pieces with bones are preferred for this recipe like chicken thighs, wings and bones. Chicken breast pieces can be avoided (optional).
Garlic - Indian garlic is preferred for its flavour.
Tamarind - Adjust the amount of tamarind used according to the sourness needed.
Kashmiri red chillies - You can increase the amount upto 30 grams for really spicy dish. Reduce the amount to 20 grams if you need it less spicy. Kashmiri red chillies give the colour to the gravy.
Coconut - Pulse the grated coconut once in the mixer before frying them for even frying. Pulsing it makes the coconut shavings even sized so that it browns evenly.
