Learn to cook Chicken Mandi- Chicken Mandi is a Yemeni traditional dish. It is a combination of meat, in this case chicken, rice and mandi masala. A very popular meal throughout the middle eastern countries.
Authentic chicken mandi is cooked in a Tandoor oven underground, over coals, which gives it an incredible smoky flavor. This recipe is an adaptation of the traditional recipe to suit modern cooking. But taste is similar to the traditional one due to the smoked charcoal.
STEP BY STEP CHICKEN MANDI RECIPE INSTRUCTIONS WITH PHOTOS:
- Heat 1tbsp ghee in a pan and fry cashews and raisins for 2 minutes. Set aside.
2. Wash and soak basmati rice for 30 minutes.
3. Add all ingredients mentioned under Mandi masala to a mixer and grind to a fine powder.
3. In a bowl add Mandi masala powder (set aside 1 tbsp for later), salt, oil, lemon juice, chili powder, ginger garlic paste, coriander powder, saffron strands mixed in water. Mix well and set aside.
4. Wash and dry chicken leg pieces. Make 3-4 slits on both sides of the chicken pieces.
5. Marinate chicken pieces with the masala paste and refrigerate for atleast 30 minutes.
Method 1:
- Steam the chicken pieces for 10 minutes on each side.
2. Then, heat 2tbsp oil in a pan, add steamed chicken pieces and fry for 5-10 minutes on each side.
Method 2:
- Heat 3tbsp oil in a pan and fry chicken pieces for 5-8 minutes on medium to high flame on both sides.
- Then turn the flame to low and cook for 15-20 minutes till it is perfectly cooked on the inside.
7. Heat 1tbsp ghee or oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add chopped onion, green chilis and fry for 3-4 minutes.
8. Add mandi masala, salt, water and bring it to a boil.
9. Add soaked basmati rice and cook till it’s almost done (8 minutes on low medium flame).
10. When rice is almost cooked, turn off the flame.
11. Add cooked chicken pieces on top of the rice. In a small bowl, place a burning charcoal, add some ghee on it and close the lid of the pan for 10-15 minutes.
12. Once the smoke is completely absorbed into rice and chicken, garnish with cashews, raisins, fried onions.
13. Serve Chicken mandi with tomato gravy or as it is.
Check out some Chicken recipes:
Chicken 65 recipe – Foodie Platter
Pressure Cooker Chicken Pulao Recipe
Natukodi Curry/ Country Chicken Recipe
Check out some Non-Vegetarian recipes:
Mutton Keema Recipe (Minced mutton)
Chintachiguru Fish curry /Tender tamarind leaves Fish Recipe
Oat crusted Fish fingers Recipe
Stir Fried Fish recipe/ Rohu fish fry/ Health Fish Fry recipe
Mutton Curry/ Mutton gravy Recipe
Prawns Pulao Recipe (Shrimps Pulao)
Gongura Prawns Recipe / Royyala Kura
Chicken Mandi Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Pieces Full Chicken leg
- 1 cup Basmati rice
- 1.5 cups Water
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 cup Oil Refer Instructions
- 2 Onions Chopped
- 4 Green chilis Vertically slit
- Cashews For garnish
- Raisins For garnish
Mandi masala
- 2 tbsp Black pepper
- 2 tbsp Cumin
- 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
- 2 tbsp Coriander
- 3 inch Cinnamon
- 2 Mace Javitri
Marination
- 1 tbsp Oil
- Mandi masala
- 1 tbsp Red chili powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 Lemon juice
- 2 tbsp Ginger garlic paste
- 4-5 strands Saffron soaked in water
Instructions
- Heat 1tbsp ghee in a pan and fry cashews and raisins for 2 minutes. Set aside.
- Wash and soak basmati rice for 30 minutes.
- Add all ingredients mentioned under Mandi masala to a mixer and grind to a fine powder.
- In a bowl add Mandi masala powder (set aside 1 tbsp for later), salt, oil, lemon juice, chili powder, ginger garlic paste, coriander powder, saffron strands mixed in water. Mix well and set aside.
- Wash and dry chicken leg pieces. Make 3-4 slits on both sides of the chicken pieces.
- Marinate chicken pieces with the masala paste and refrigerate for atleast 30 minutes.
Method 1
- Steam the chicken pieces for 10 minutes on each side.
- Then, heat 2tbsp oil in a pan, add steamed chicken pieces and fry for 5-10 minutes on each side.
Method 2
- Heat 3tbsp oil in a pan and fry chicken pieces for 5-8 minutes on medium to high flame on both sides.
- Then turn the flame to low and cook for 15-20 minutes till it is perfectly cooked on the inside.
Continuation of recipe
- Heat 1tbsp ghee or oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add chopped onion, green chilis and fry for 3-4 minutes.
- Add mandi masala, salt, water and bring it to a boil.
- Add soaked basmati rice and cook till it's almost done (8 minutes on low medium flame).
- When rice is almost cooked, turn off the flame.
- Add cooked chicken pieces on top of the rice. In a small bowl, place a burning charcoal, add some ghee on it and close the lid of the pan for 10-15 minutes.
- Once the smoke is completely absorbed into rice and chicken, garnish with cashews, raisins, fried onions.
- Serve Chicken mandi with tomato gravy or as it is.
Notes
- Make fresh mandi masala to retain the flavors.
- Marinating chicken is a mandatory step to let chicken absorb the flavors.
- I prefer method 1 of steaming the chicken first and then frying it. It helps cook the chicken well.
- Smoking chicken and rice with burnt charcoal is necessary for that traditional Arabian Mandi flavor.
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