The grounds have now cleared and the intense white landscape from a few days ago with freezing temperatures seems to be a distant memory. With the gradually rising temperatures, nature also seems to be gradually waking up from its wintery hibernation in our part of the world. A bud here, a leaf there, does bring with it the hope of new life.
Which means I better get ready to spring clean my little garden; gardening tools – ready or not, here I come! Well, maybe not right now, but definitely soon!
On the kitchen front, we really enjoyed my take on our dish of til diya kukura mangxo ( Assamese style chicken curry with sesame seeds), from my birthplace- Assam, in the North East of India.
It has a wonderfully nutty flavour from the sesame seeds, but is not overpowering. Like most Assamese dishes, it is characterised by the minimum use of spices to let the main ingredient shine through. And since we enjoyed it so much, sharing the recipe below so that you can make some and enjoy it too! And as you can see, not all delicious Indian curries are orange in colour! Do give this a try, I’m sure you will not be disappointed!
Preparing the sesame seeds-
While frying the sesame seeds keep an eye to see if it is burning because if it does, it will negatively affect the flavour of the dish. After removing the pan from heat, transfer the sesame seeds to another dish to cool in order to stop it cooking further from the residual heat in the pan.
Substitutes-
- I have used mustard oil to enhance the authentic flavour; if you do not have this, you can cook with your regular cooking oil.
- You can use white or brown sesame seeds for the recipe if you cannot find the black ones. However, please keep in mind that the black sesame seeds are crunchier, nuttier and have a stronger flavour than the white sesame seeds which have a sweeter taste. If you are able o fid them, the black sesame seeds come highly recommended for this recipe.
Serving suggestions-
The voracious rice eaters that we are, we mainly enjoyed it with some hot steamed rice. Having said that, we also enjoyed the leftovers with some flatbread and it tasted great too!
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Recipe card-
Til diya kukura mangxo / Assamese style chicken curry with sesame seeds
Ingredients
For marinating
- 850 gms skinless chicken thighs (on the bone), cut into small pieces
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tsp salt
Others
- 1 cups black sesame seeds
- 3 tbsp mustard oil (see notes at the bottom of the recipe)
- 1½ tsp cumin seeds
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cup coarsely ground onion
- 2 tsp crushed garlic
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 3 fresh chillies, slit halfway through the bottom (I used red chillies)
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ½+½+2 cups water
Instructions
Marination
- Rub the chicken with the marinating ingredients, cover and keep aside for at least 30 minutes.
Preparing the sesame seeds
- Heat a small pan and add the sesame seeds.
- Stir continuously ( or else it may burn) for 4-5 minutes till it releases its flavour. Some of the seeds may start spitting.
- Remove from heat, cool, grind and keep aside. (see notes below)
The curry
- Heat the mustard oil in a pan. The oil is ready when it turns lighter in colour and is lightly smoky.
- Add the cumin seeds followed by the bay leaves and stir for 10 seconds.
- Add the onion and fry for 1½ minutes, stirring constantly over medium heat.
- Add the garlic, followed by the ginger and stir for another 3-4 minutes or till the raw smell disappears.
- Add the marinated chicken and stir over medium to high heat for about 3 minutes.
- Add the ground cumin and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Add splashes of water every now and then to release the spices sticking to the pan. I used ½ cup of water in total for splashing. Keep scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent sticking.
- Add the fresh chillies and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring constantly like before.
- Mix the ground sesame seeds with ½ cup of water and ½ tsp turmeric and add to the chicken.
- Stir for a minute.
- Add 2 cups of water, stir and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for another 6-7 minutes or until the gravy thickens and nicely coats the chicken.
- Remove from heat and enjoy hot with rice or Indian flatbreads,
Video
Notes
- While frying the sesame seeds keep an eye to see if it is burning because if it does, it will negatively affect the flavour of the dish. After removing the pan from heat, transfer the sesame seeds to another dish to cool in order to stop it cooking further from the residual heat in the pan.
- I have used mustard oil to enhance the authentic flavour; if you do not have this, you can cook with your regular cooking oil.
Hope you give this a try and enjoy it as much as we did! Speaking of chicken, do check out my lemon chicken recipe for a completely different chicken recipe.
Until next time!
-Sunita
STAY CONNECTED:
Thank you . Really enjoyed this recipe- both, making and eating it.
From a fellow assamese in Bromley, Kent 🙂
You are most welcome. Thanks for letting me know that you enjoyed it.
Dear Sunita, I am from Malaysia, I tried your recipe today (Sun Jul 31, 2022). Delicious. Thanks very much for generously sharing your recipe with others. It’s very kind of you.
You are most welcome; glad you liked the recipe!
Thank you, this recipe is flavourful and delicious. Cheers!
You’re welcome; glad you enjoyed it!