Chicken Stew is a comfort food that is both filling and satisfying. The softness of the chicken is enhanced by the various tastes and textures of a variety of vegetables, cooked together with minimal spices. This dish can be made with vegetables of your choice, as long as the veggies are cut in even shapes so that they boil well.
Some vegetables cook faster than others so boil each accordingly. Some veggies that take longer to cook can be boiled with the chicken, and others, for example peas and beans, can be added later. But the idea is to have stew that has all the veggies and chicken evenly cooked.
This dish involves a slow cooking process, usually boiled over a low flame. The dish can be made with veggies and meat of your choice, it can be adapted to any palate, while some prefer basic masala, others like to flavour it up by adding a little more spice. You can also add a little bit of cornflour to thicken the gravy. Rich in protein, vitamins and minerals, Chicken Stew is a low-calorie diet, ideal not just when you are down with a cold or the flu but also for a light meal at any time of the day.
Chicken curry
Chicken Stew is also known as Chicken Mull. It is believed that stews were first made in ancient Japan, but this theory is not entirely accepted as there are different origin stories. Stews have often been considered soups, but that is not correct as stews have a thicker consistency compared to soups, which are far more liquidy.
Here is a Bengali-style preparation that incorporates spices typical to the regional cuisine.
Ingredients:
1. 1 kg chicken
2. 4-5 onions
3. 10-12 garlic cloves
4. 1 ginger
5. 10-12 green chilies
6. 5-6 turnips
7. 1 carrot
8. 5-6 potatoes
9. 2 tomatoes
10. 4-5 shelled peas
11. 10-12 beans
12. Coriander leaves
13. Salt
14. Turmeric powder
15. Sugar
16. 3 cardamoms
17. 1 cinnamon stick
18. 3 cloves
19. 5-6 peppercorns
20. 2 bay leaves
21. 1 cup water
22. A blob of butter
Method:
1. Wash all the vegetables and the chicken pieces well.
2. Cut the onions into quarter pieces.
3. Peel and chop the garlic cloves.
4. Peel and chop the ginger.
5. Peel and chop the turnips.
6. Cut the tomatoes in quarter size.
7. Cut the potatoes in quarter size.
8. Chop the green chilies.
9. Take a bowl and put the vegetables into it.
10. Add salt, a little bit of sugar, and mix.
11. In a cooker, pour 2 tablespoons of mustard and in it slightly fry the bay leaves, cardamoms, cloves, bay leaves, and peppercorns.
12. Put the chopped vegetables and add the chicken pieces.
13. Put a teaspoon of turmeric powder, and stir everything well.
14. Put salt as per taste.
15. Put 1 cup of water, add the butter, and pressure cook till the chicken is succulent.
16. Then add the peas and beans and cook well in the cooker.
17. Serve hot.
