Mangalorean Chicken Ghee Roast & Neer Dosa
Author: 
Recipe type: Main, Entree, Bread
Cuisine: Indian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
A classic Mangalorean combo, spicy chicken pan-roasted in good quality ghee is paired with lacy rice crepes for a delicious and wholesome meal.
You will need:
Chicken Ghee Roast,
  • Chicken drumsticks - 6, skinless
  • Yogurt - ¼ cup
  • Turmeric powder - ½ tsp
  • Ginger-garlic paste - 1 tsp
  • Red chili powder - 2 tsp (use Kashmiri chili for a deeper color without much heat)
  • Dried red chilies - 6-8
  • Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
  • Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
  • Fenugreek seeds - a pinch
  • Cloves - 3
  • Red onion - 1 small, diced
  • Garlic - 6 large cloves
  • Tamarind pulp - ΒΌ cup (extracted from a lime-sized ball of tamarind fruit or use just 2 tsp tamarind concentrate)
  • Ghee - 5 tbsp
  • Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
  • Jaggery or brown sugar - 2 tsp
  • Salt - to taste
  • Lime juice - 1 tsp
Neer Dosa,
  • Rice - 1 cup, any small or medium grained rice
  • Coconut - ½ cup, freshly grated
  • Salt - 1 tsp
  • Water - as needed
How to:
  1. Chicken ghee roast: Make a couple of slash marks in the chicken drumsticks. Rub yogurt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, ginger-garlic paste and ½ tsp salt all over the meat. Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight.
  2. In a skillet, roast the dried red chilies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds and cloves till fragrant. Cool slightly and grind to a smooth paste along with red onions, garlic and tamarind pulp. Set aside.
  3. Heat 3 tbsp ghee in a large pan. Arrange chicken pieces in pan without marinade juices and fry lightly on all sides to seal in the juices. Remove to a plate and set aside.
  4. Heat the rest of the ghee. Add curry leaves and the ground spice paste. Saute on medium heat till you see the ghee separating at the sides.
  5. Now return the chicken to the pan along with any reserved marinade juices, jaggery and salt to taste.
  6. Coat chicken with all the spices, cover and cook on low heat till done. Check a couple of times in between to make sure the chicken is not sticking to the bottom. If so, you can sprinkle some water and continue to cook.
  7. Once chicken is done, raise the heat and reduce the gravy till it is thick and coats all the chicken pieces well. Sprinkle lime juice and remove from heat.
  8. Keep covered till ready to serve.
  9. Neer dosa: Wash rice in water a couple of times. Soak in water for a couple of hours so that it is easy to grind.
  10. Grind the drained rice and coconut with some water to make a smooth batter. Remove to a bowl and add salt and enough water to make a very thin batter that just coats a ladle dipped in it.
  11. Heat a well-seasoned cast iron (or nonstick) griddle till a drop of water dropped on it sizzles immediately.
  12. Lightly grease the pan with a wadded paper towel dipped in some oil. Pour a ladle full of batter (around ¼ cup) in the center of the pan and quickly swirl it around to coat the entire pan with batter. It doesn't have to be perfect, but make sure it is a thin layer.
  13. Cover with a large lid and cook for 30 seconds. When you notice that the batter is cooked, slide a spatula under the dosa and fold it into triangles. Remember that neer dosa will not brown when cooked.
  14. Remove dosa to a plate and set aside. Repeat with the rest of the batter. This batter will make around 15-20 neer dosas.
  15. Serve immediately with chicken ghee roast, chutneys or other curries. Neer dosa is best enjoyed fresh.
Notes:
1. The time shown here doesn't reflect the marination time for chicken or soaking time for rice.
2. Neer dosas tend to stick to one another when hot, so do not stack them up. Serve them in separate plates or layer them with parchment paper.
Recipe by At The Corner of Happy And Harried at https://www.happyandharried.com/2017/02/04/mangalorean-chicken-ghee-roast-neer-dosa/