My horoscope this weekend prophesied that I would take a long drive and even have a picnic. Boy was I skeptical! I hardly get my a** out of bed earlier than noon on a Sunday, so I was pitting my practiced laziness against the schemes of the universe. We went out for a party on Saturday night and like with all parties came home in a more than happy daze and flopped into bed. I challenged the universe to beat the combo of my hangover + laziness!
I got a call at 9:00 AM in the morning… groan. I rolled over and half blinking looked at the screen. It was my sister. I picked up the call, knowing that leaving it unanswered would just lead to a barrage of calls until I wished the phone would self destruct. Would I please drop her to her exam center? – she had to take an MBA admission test. Since I was the one who goaded her to apply, I had to give in. I didn’t even have time to get breakfast in. Drove like a maniac and picked her and my mom up. Then we started the long drive to Electronic city. Wait…Did I just say long drive? Aaargh… part one of horoscope rebelling – fail!
Reached the spot and quickly wished her luck, while she ran in to write her exam. Mom and I decided to wait for her to finish, so we were loitering around and checking out the campus. My stomach was literally grumbling now. Mom smiled and said she had a surprise for me. She had packed some lunch because she knew I wouldn’t have time to eat at home! She unpacked a basket to reveal my favorite Chicken Curry, steamed rice, fruit and a plate, forks and water! I literally had a picnic in the park. The universe had won!
P.S. This recipe below is mom’s brilliant Karnataka Style Chicken Chops Masala which is best eaten with Ragi Balls or Mudde. I however love it with my white rice or Ghee Rice!
Chicken Chops Masala
Cooking time: 45 mins
Serves: 4
What you need:
½ kg Chicken, with bones
1 big Onion (1/2 sliced and ½ chopped)
4-6 Green Chillies
4-6 Green Chillies
1 Tbsp Coriander/ Dhaniya Powder
1 ½ tsp Pepper powder
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
15 pods Garlic
¼ inch fresh root Ginger
1 small Tomato, quartered
1/3 cup Grated Coconut/ 2×2 inch fresh Coconut
1 bunch Coriander leaves
2 Tbsp Oil
1 Tbsp Ghee
Salt to taste
Garinsh:
1 boiled Egg
What to do:
1. In a hot pan, add ½ Tbsp Oil. Fry the ½ chopped Onion with Chillies. Remove and grind with ginger and garlic to make a paste. Keep aside.
2. Grind the coconut finely with ½ glass of water. Keep aside.
3. Grind the coriander coarsely and set aside.
In a heavy bottomed pressure cooker pan, heat the remaining oil with the ghee. Add the sliced onion and sauté till light brown. Add the paste in step 1 and sauté well. Add in turmeric, Dhaniya and pepper powders – fry for 3-4 mins but do not brown. Now add in the chicken pieces and fry well for 5 mins.
Now add the tomato pieces and sauté well, scraping the sides of the pan to release the masala. Now add in the coriander and coconut pastes and mix well. Fry for 2 more mins. Now add 1 ½ glass water and let it come to a boil.
Close the lid and wait for the pressure to build. Now, pressure cook the chicken for 15 mins on medium flame. Turn off the stove. Wait for the steam to settle down for 10 mins and then garnish with a hardboiled egg. Serve with Ragi Mudde or hot steamed rice. Bliss.
The FoodPorn Diaries 
Thank you! I need some inspiration from time to time 😉
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yumminesss! Ur doing a great job swaps! Keep posting 🙂
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So true….we tend to assume these recipes being passed on by default n the later becomes rocket science…I'm with you on this expedition….Thumbs up!!
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Yup.. this dish is so homey that most people assume you would be handed down the recipe from mom/ granny, so no one documents it. I'm currently on a quest to wean out all the family recipes from Mom and mom-in-law … it's a treasure trove of awesomeness and more importantly food I love to eat!
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Wow!!!This was the only real recipe that I found online for Chops. The end result left me licking my fingers for a first time chops maker….Bless you for putting this one up
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Yes it's the same one! I can't believe Bhandu managed to eat mudde!
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ooo yumm..i remember eating this in your house…and remember we fed bhandu ragi mudde?;)
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