Spicy Chicken Thoran

Thoran is a Malayalam word used for stir-fries which have grated coconut added to it. Thoran is a very common preparation in Kerala and you will find it as a side dish with rice every time. This is usually prepared with different vegetables, but people do make similar versions with non-veg ingredients too.

This spicy chicken thoran uses roasted grated coconut along with spices, unlike it’s vegetarian counterparts. So this dish makes for a great starter as well as a side with rice, rotis and porottas (yeah, the layered lachcha parathas that Kerala is famous for..;))

The process for making this dish is pretty straight forward, so don’t be taken aback by the number of ingredients listed. A lot of it are the whole and dry spices which you will have in your pantry. So do give this a try!

Spicy Chicken Thoran

Course: Starter, MainCuisine: Indian, KeralaDifficulty: Moderate
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

10

minutes
Cooking time

30

minutes
Total time

40

minutes

An easy to make spicy chicken stir fry recipe using roasted grated coconut!

Ingredients

  • Boneless Chicken – 250 gms, cut into cubes

  • Salt – as per taste

  • For roasting coconut
  • Coconut Oil – 1 tbsp

  • Grated coconut – ½ cup

  • Curry Leaves – a few

  • Chilli Powder – 1 tsp

  • Coriander Powder – 1 tsp

  • Garam Masala Powder – ½ tsp

  • Salt – as per taste

  • For the thoran
  • Coconut Oil – 1 tbsp

  • Cinnamon – ½ inch stick

  • Cardamom – 1

  • Cloves – 2

  • Star Anise – 1

  • Mustard Seeds – ½ tsp

  • Onion – 1 medium, sliced thin

  • Garlic – 5-6 cloves, sliced thin

  • Ginger – ½ nch piece, sliced thin

  • Green Chilli – 2, split into two

  • Curry Leaves – a few

  • Pepper Powder – ½ tsp

  • Chilli Powder – ½ tsp

  • Coriander Powder – ½ tsp

  • Turmeric Powder – ¼ tsp

Directions

  • Boil the chicken along with the salt and a little water till the chicken is cooked through. Once cooked, shred the chicken into smaller pieces using a fork.
  • In a pan or kadai, add the coconut oil. Once the oil is hot, add the grated coconut, curry leaves, chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder and salt.
  • Keep stirring continuously and fry till its fragrant and a golden brown color.
  • Remove this onto a plate and let it cool down.
  • In the same pan or kadai, add the coconut oil for preparing the final dish.
  • Once the oil is hot, add the whole spices to this – cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and star anise – and fry them till it changes color.
  • To this add the mustard seeds and let it splutter.
  • Next, add the onion, garlic, ginger, green chilli and curry leaves to this and let it fry till the onions change color.
  • To this, add the pepper powder, chilli powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder and fry till fragrant.
  • Next, add the shredded chicken to this and mix well.
  • Cook covered on low flame for a couple of minutes till the masalas coat the chicken well.
  • Next, add the fried coconut and again mix well. Sprinkle a little water and cook it covered for another 5 min.
  • The chicken thoran is ready. Take it off heat and serve hot. You can garnish it with some fried curry leaves if you like.

Recipe Video

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