Ingredients (Serves 3 – 4)
1. Boneless chicken – 200 gm, cut into small pieces
2. Oil – 1.5 tbsp
3. Onion – 1 medium-small, finely chopped
Ginger and garlic, finely chopped – 2 tsp each
Green chilly – 1, minced
Curry leaves – A few, chopped
4. Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
Kashmiri chilly powder – 1.5 – 2 tsp
Coriander powder – 1 tsp
Pepper powder – 1/8 tsp
Garam masala powder – 3/4 tsp or to taste
5. Tomato – 1 small or 1/2 medium, chopped
6. Salt – To taste
7. Puttu podi / ari podi – Around 1.5 cups
Salt
Water – As required
8. Grated coconut – 1 cup or as required
Method
1. Cook the chicken cubes adding salt, pepper powder until completely done. Set aside to cool down. Shred in the small jar of a blender in 1 – 2 batches
2. Heat coconut oil in a kadai / cheena chatti over medium high heat. Add onion, little salt, ginger, garlic, green chilly and curry leaves. Saute until light brown. Add the spice powders numbered 4. Next add chopped tomato and saute until mushy. Add shredded chicken, salt if needed and mix well. Cook for a few minutes and switch off. You can add 2 – 3 tbsp grated coconut, if you wish.
3. For the puttu – Mix around 1 cup water with enough salt. Sprinkle the water on the puttu podi and mix well with your fingers without forming any lumps, until the puttu podi becomes moist. Be careful while mixing, it should not turn into a dough. (If there are a lot of lumps in the mixture, pulse it once or twice in a blender). The final mixture should be in a powdered form, but wet enough for steaming. To check the consistency, grab a handful of the wet rice flour and press it. If it holds shape, but crumbles when pressed again, then the consistency should be right. When the rice flour is dampened, set aside for 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile fill a pressure cooker with one-third water. Close with its lid and bring to a boil.
4. Put the small steel plate with holes (puttu chillu), inside the regular puttu kutti / chiratta puttu maker mould. Fill the puttu maker/mould with 1.5 tbsp grated coconut and 2 – 3 tbsp chicken masala. Now add the puttu podi ( just loosely fill it with rice flour, do not press). Top with some more grated coconut, if you wish. Cover with the lid. Place it on top of the pressure cooker when steam starts coming out of the pressure cooker lid. Steam cook for about 4 – 5 minutes or until steam comes profusely through the small holes on top of the chiratta puttu maker lid. Take out the mould and invert it into a serving bowl / casserole. Serve chicken puttu with pappadam and a hot cup of tea.
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