Simple Chicken Rice Recipe

This simple chicken and rice recipe is in order to cook chicken and rice without any masala. This recipe is inspired from a Saudi chicken recipe called "Saleeg"

Ingredients:

1. Chicken - 750 gms
2. Onion - 2 large
3. Pepper corns - 10 - 12
4. Butter - 50 gms
5. Cardamoms - 4
6. Olive oil - 4 tbsp
7. Rice - 300 gms
8. Salt - to taste

Preparation:

Chicken:

• Wash the chicken clean. In a deep pan, add the chicken, 4 cups of water, 6 pepper corns, cardamoms and one whole peeled onion. Don't dice or cut the onion, just add it whole.
• Cover the pan and let the chicken boil. It will take approximately 20 - 25 minutes for the chicken to cook.
• Once done, you would see the meet coming off the bones. Gently take the chicken pieces off the pan and keep them in a separate plate.
• Keep the water, onion and spices, we will need them later.
• Coat the chicken with butter and salt, nicely. In a microwave set it to grill and grill it for 5 mins. Turn the pieces and grill them again, till they are all nicely cooked. Keep the chicken pieces aside.

Rice:

• Wash the rice with water.
• In a pressure cooker add, olive oil and let it warm up. Add the 6 pepper corns, 1 large diced onion, and salt. Saute them till onions are soft.
• Add the rice and saute it for 1 minute. If you see the ingredients burning, turn the heat to simmer.
• Now add the water and spices left over from cooking the chicken (don't add the boiled onion left over). If you feel the water is less for boiling the rice, add a little more and let it cook.
• Take the boiled onion left over from the boiling the chicken and press it gently, it will split into smaller petals.
• Serve the rice in a platter and add the chicken and boiled onion pieces on the top. Serve hot.

Potol Bata

Potol Bata, potol means Parwal or pointed goured in English, and bata means paste. This simple recipe is of a parwal paste. It is so simple to cook and yet tasty to eat. One can make this as a side dish to the main course.

I must give due credit to my Boudi (bhabhi) in Kanchrapara. She casually gave the recipe to my Ma and she in turn suggested it to me. The recipe is quite similar to Chingri bata. So what are we waiting for, lets start.

Ingredients:

1. Potol (parwal) - 250 gms
2. Onion - 1 (large)
3. Garlic - 5 cloves
4. Ginger - 1 inch
5. Salt to taste
6. Haldi - 1/2 tsp
7. Red chili powder - 1 tsp
8. Green chillies - 5
9. Vegitable Oil - 5 tbsp

Preparation:

• Peel the potol with the help of a peeler. Once all the potol is peeled off, dice them into tiny pieces. Smaller the pieces the easier it would be to cook.
• Dice the onion, garlic and ginger. Slit the green chillies in between
• In a kadai add oil and warm it up. When the oil is nicely warmed up, add the potol, onion, ginger, garlic and all the spices.
• Mix them well. Cover the kadai and let it cook in simmer. In between stir them occassionally.
• Once all the ingredients are well cooked, take the kadai off the head and let it cool.
• Take all the contents and grind them in a stone grinder or food processor. Remember you just want to grind them once.... dont make a paste out of it.
• Serve with the main course.