Chicken Bond(Chicken English Fry)

 The name is Bond. Chicken Bond!

This name may ring a bell about the 'Spy Who's Loved by Many' for English action movie buffs, but it is actually not a dish loved by Mr Bond! Rather, the appearance of the dish has indirect suggestion to a weapon used by Mr Bond in the stories, his pistol or gun!

Yes. We used to call this Pistol as the shape of the chicken joint looks like one! I relished this starter dish at Anupama Restaurant in Hotel Usha Mangalore in the early Eighties. My friend Kulyadi Divakar Pai first introduced me to this dish like he did in the case of many other exotic dishes including Ceylon Parathas and Chicken White Korma. We few friends used to hang out regularly on weekends at Anupama, now renamed as Anupama's Shetty Lunch Home. They made this perfectly with a blend of Indian spices with English sauces to deliver a spicy succulent deep fried chicken joint rolled in a sweet and tangy sauce. The aroma of the sizzling English Chicken used to emanate all over the place, making many a customer ogle the dish and go for the same, as their waiter took order for food!

Years have gone by, and Anupama was closed in Hotel Usha way back in the late Nineties, moving to Abhiman Residency. I was not so regular there, as we started cooking most of the delicacies at home. However, I always had the urge to make this dish at home for which, I could not get recipe anywhere. Back in Hotel Usha, the partner Ravindra Shetty(Kaane Ravi, we call him fondly) was a close friend but he was always tight lipped about their recipes. His elder brother Mohandas also was secretive. I am not the type who would pester restaurateurs to part with their trade secrets. Now that Anupama has started Shetty Lunch Home in the same premises again, one can try this dish there. Highly recommended to those who like sweetish starters.

I could assume the formula of the dish in course of time. One advantage for me is, I not only remember the taste of various dishes I have tasted over the years in different places, I also can guess the major ingredients that go into a particular dish. All that remains to be formulated, is the quantity of spices and the process of cooking. That too is not so difficult when I can see that North Indian, Chinese and Continental special starters are mostly marinated with salt pepper and select spices, deep fried and then cooked with a sauce or gravy. Likewise, I formulated this dish as well, not quite like Anupama makes it, but close to that. Adding Worcestershire sauce is left to your choice, but I found it essential, as I named the dish 'Chicken Bond'. Chicken English Fry wouldn't be complete without authentic English ingredient in it. Right folks?

Ingredients:
Chicken joints(Tangdi) without skin - 2
Salt and Pepper
Red Chilli Paste - 1 Tsp
Minced Garlic - 1/2 Tsp
Minced Ginger - 1 Tsp
Lemon Juice - 1/2 lemon
Corn Flour - 2 Tsp
Refined Flour(Maida) - 2 Tsp
Refined Vegetable Oil - At least 250 ml, For deep frying
Butter - 30 Gms
Brown Onion Paste - 1 Tsp
Kashmiri Chilli powder - 1 Tsp
Sugar - 1 Tsp
Worcestershire Sauce - 2 Tsp(Optional)
Dark Soy Sauce - 1 Tsp
Tomato sauce/Ketchup - 2 Tsp
Chopped Parsley or Cilantro - A handful for garnishing

Method:
Wash, pat dry and put gashes on the chicken joints.
Rub salt, pepper, 1/2 tsp each of minced ginger and garlic, 1 Tsp red chilli paste on the chicken joints and marinate them for 1-2 hours in the fridge.
Mix in the flours, heat oil in a deep frying pan and fry the marinated pieces of chicken on medium heat till crisp and done.
Drain on kitchen paper lined in a colander.
Heat a nonstick shallow pan and melt butter.
Ad brown onion paste along with ginger paste and fry for 1 min.
Add the Kashmiri chilli powder, sugar, the three sauces, and saute till the mass is well blended.
No need to add salt, as the sauces already contain salt.
You may add 10 ml diluted vinegar, if you are not adding Worcestershire sauce.
As the sauce sizzles, sprinkle little water if the sauce is too thick.
Drop the deep fried chicken pieces one by one carefully and roll them over to coat them fully with the sauce.
Let it cook for 1-2 minutes and get slightly dry.
Transfer to a serving dish.
Garnish with freshly chopped Parsley or cilantro.
Serve with French fries or salad of your choice as a starter.
This also goes well as a side dish with noodles, fried rice, ghee rice or pulao.

 

Frying Tips:
1. Oil should be fuming hot and then maintained at medium heat while frying from first joint till the last. As soon as one joint is fried and removed, allow the oil to heat up for 2-3 minutes before dropping in the next one.
2. Use tongs to pick the chicken joints and turn them over.