If you like spicy chicken curries then this fiery, aromatic Chicken Chettinad curry is right up your alley. Delicious to the core, you'll want to lick your plate off.
Marinate the chicken with chili powder, salt, oil, black cardamom, bay leaves, green cardamom pods, star anise seed, turmeric powder, and mace. Set it aside for about 20 minutes till you get the masala ready.
Heat oil in a medium-sized pan and at medium-low heat, add all the ingredients listed in the masala section to the pan (except coconut and tomatoes) and roast it till an aroma emanates from it ( takes about a minute).
Add the grated coconut and roast for another minute and take it off heat.
Transfer the spices/masala to a blender along with chopped tomatoes and grind it to a fine paste using water as needed.
Using a traditional stovetop cooker
Heat oil in a cooker kept at medium heat. Once heated, add mustard seeds and when they begin to pop, add curry leaves, along with channa dal. Fry them for about 30 seconds or so, and then add onions, garlic, and ginger.
When the onions turn translucent (takes about 3-4 minutes), add the marinated chicken and mix well. Cook for about 3-4 minutes.
Add the ground masala and 1/2 cup water and mix well.
Cover the cooker and put the vent on. Let the vent go off once before switching off the gas. Wait for the cooker to cool down before opening the lid.
Garnish it with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or roti.
Using Instant Pot / Mealthy
Choose the Saute setting and set it to normal. Heat the oil in the steel insert of the Instant Pot and add mustard seeds to it.
When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add curry leaves, along with channa dal. Fry them for about 30 seconds or so, and then add onions, garlic, and ginger.
When the onions turn translucent (takes about 3-4 minutes), add the marinated chicken and mix well. Let the chicken cook for about 3-4 minutes.
Add the ground masala and 1/2 cup water and mix well.
Cover the Instant Pot, set the vent to sealing and pressure cook on high for 5 minutes. When the cooking cycle is complete, move the vent carefully to the venting position.
Open the lid and garnish the chicken with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice or roti.
Notes
Skip the channa dal.
Instead of adding whole spices in the marinade, you can roast them with the rest of the spices used in the masala.
Use bone-in chicken instead of boneless chicken thighs. In that case, set the Instant Pot cooking time to 10 minutes.
As far as spices go, less is more. Do not exceed the amounts listed.
Replace tomatoes with tamarind (size of a ping pong ball). Soak it in 1/2 cup hot water for about 10 minutes. Run it through a sieve and use the strained juice while grinding.