Indian · Authentic-ish Indian

Chicken Chettinad

Chicken Chettinad, plated as one serving.

361 kcal a serving, against 477 for the traditional version. That is 116 kcal off, or 24%, with 41.8g of protein. Serves 4. 60 minutes.

What the traditional version is

Skinless chicken pieces braised in a fiercely spicy, dark gravy made from heavily fried onions, freshly grated coconut, and a complex blend of dry-roasted seeds and peppercorns, all swimming in a thick layer of oil.

What changed, and what each change costs

120g of fresh coconut and 60g of oil for just 30g of coconut and 15g of oil

Chettinad curries traditionally rely on a thick paste of grated coconut and lots of oil to build the sauce. I dry-roast the spices and a small amount of coconut instead, blending them with tomatoes to create a thick base. You get the toasted coconut flavour without turning the dinner into a fat bomb that you can't escape.

What it costs you. The sauce loses that luxurious, oil-heavy sheen that separates out on the plate. It is a bit rougher and less overwhelmingly rich, relying entirely on the tomatoes for moisture. There's a definite textural difference, but the flavour still punches hard.

600g of chicken up to 800g

Since I've hacked away the volume provided by all that coconut and oil, the pan looked a bit sad and empty. Chucking in more chicken thigh fills the physical gap and gives you a much better return on your dinner. It means you actually feel full from the meat rather than the heavy fats.

What it costs you. Your butcher bill goes up slightly. What you've got is solid meat, so you have to pay for it. A cheap vegetable filler is a different dish and you know where to find it. I think the expense is easily justified when you look at the final plate.

150g of tomatoes up to 250g

With the coconut volume slashed, the curry needs a liquid base so the chicken actually has something to braise in. Fresh tomatoes break down and provide a sharp, acidic gravy that balances out the massive pile of black pepper and dried chillies.

What it costs you. The flavour profile shifts slightly away from creamy coconut towards a sharper tomato tang. It cuts through the spice beautifully, but purists might spot the difference. If you don't mind a slightly redder sauce, it works a treat.

What goes in it

The ingredients, without the quantities. The weights are what the figures below are computed from, and they are in the book.

How it starts

  1. Put a large, dry frying pan over a medium heat.
  2. Add the ground coriander, ground cumin and grated fresh coconut to the pan.
  3. Heat the vegetable oil in the same pan.

The rest of the method, and every weight, is in Authentic-ish Indian.

The numbers

Per servingTraditionalLightened
Calories477361
Protein32.5g41.8g
Fat32.3g15.7g
Saturated fat12.6g5g
Carbohydrate16.2g13.7g
Protein per 100 kcal6.8g11.6g

Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Indian prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked. How every number is computed sets out the method.

The method is in the book

This is a proper, sweat-inducing curry that hits hard with black pepper and toasted spices. I stripped out the oil slick and the heavy coconut paste, replacing them with a sharp tomato base and extra chicken. You lose the rich, oily mouthfeel, but the trade is absolutely worth it for a midweek dinner that actually leaves you feeling energetic. It's loud, it's spicy, and it doesn't mess about.

The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Indian, along with 54 more. Buy the paperback

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