Chicken achari is a spicy & tangy dish prepared with all beautiful Indian spices and serves as a perfect finger food or party appetizer! The burst of flavors in this chicken achari is simply mind-blowing!
An Indian style chicken stir-fry dish is what you need for your next potluck to be called a culinary queen! And this chicken achari recipe of mine will help you achieve that goal!
I had learned this tempting chicken achari recipe many years back and it is still one of our favorites! When we want to have a quick chicken bite or a chicken starter dish, this one comes through very quickly!
Best part of making chicken achari is that you would not require any special ingredient for making this; all the staple Indian spices are what you would need to churn out this tempting dish!
This chicken achari is also an onion-free dish! So essentially there is no cutting or chopping involved to make such a tasty recipe! How cool is that!
If you are planning any house party soon, have this chicken achari on your menu and I can guarantee that all your chicken-lover guests will thank you for this! They may even ask you for the recipe and you know where to look for that! 😉
What is chicken achari?
You may already know about achari chicken tikka which is a restaurant classic. My chicken achari is not a tikka; but it’s nowhere less than a tikka in terms of taste and flavors !
My chicken achari is a delicious Indian style chicken stir fry dish which is infused with all the beautiful whole spices that are used in making pickles. Pickling is a good old Indian technique of preserving fruits & vegetables in oil and spices.
Pickles are usually quite strong in taste with very pungent, spicy and sour flavors. It is consumed in a tiny quantity as a condiment with any kind of Indian dish.
I am sure every Indian has one or the other favorite variety of pickle always handy at home! This chicken achari is made with all such flavorful pickling whole spices and a spicy, tangy and wonderfully flavorful chicken appetizer dish is churned out to treat our soul!
Ingredients for chicken achari
Let’s check the list of ingredients we need to make this delicious dish!
Chicken: I have used chicken thigh filets which are boneless & skinless as I wanted to make it as a finger food. But this recipe works well with bone-in chicken curry cut pieces as well. Only the cooking time would differ a bit if you use bone-in chicken pieces.
I had cut the chicken thighs into small bite-sized pieces as it is easier to serve and works perfectly as a party appetizer.
Aromatics: No Indian dish is complete without the quintessential aromatics i.e. ginger paste and garlic paste! You would need a good amount of each for perfect flavors.
Dry mango powder: Since chicken achari is supposed to be tangy, dry mango powder is one of the two key ingredients to bring in the sour element in this mind-blowing chicken recipe!
Lemon: The second key ingredient for tartness is of course our good old lemon! You will need a generous amount of lemon juice to give that tangy kick to your chicken achari!
Other spices: Apart from dry mango powder, you will also need the usual suspects – the other quintessential Indian spices which are turmeric powder, both types of red chili powder, cumin powder and coriander powder.
Green chilies: Chicken achari is not only tangy but also a spicy dish and a good amount of fresh green chillies does the trick. Feel free to adjust the amount of heat depending on your tolerance.
Tempering spices: The most important element of a perfect chicken achari is the tempering spices. You will need a combination of cumin seeds, kalonji/Nigella seeds/onion seeds, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and dry red chilies.
These are the typical whole spices that are used for making pickles. When you temper the oil using these spices, they release their flavors into the oil and the oil in turn infuses the chicken while being cooked.
Finally you are treated with a delicious tangy, spicy chicken dish which is flavored with beautifully aromatic spices!
Curry leaves: Curry leaves carry immense flavors and work like magic in this dish! Also add a burst of freshness to your spicy & tangy chicken achari!
Fresh coriander leaves: Garnish your chicken achari with a handful of freshly chopped coriander leaves a.k.a. cilantro!
Oil: Since pickles are ideally made with mustard oil, I would also suggest using mustard oil for making your chicken achari. But if it is too pungent for you, then use any other flavorless vegetable oil like sunflower or canola.
Salt: Season the chicken with salt while marinating; it will allow the salt to penetrate deep inside the meat and make a well-seasoned dish. Also season the spices while stir frying as per your taste.
How to make chicken achari?
Let’s check out the step by step process of making chicken achari!
Step 1: I have used boneless & skinless chicken thighs for my chicken achari; so the first step is to cut them into small pieces. Cut each chicken thigh filet into 2-inch cubes. Wash and drain out all the excess water.
Step 2: Take the chicken pieces in a large mixing bowl for marinating. Add all the ingredients listed for marinating – ginger paste, garlic paste, both Kashmiri & regular red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, lemon juice, dry mango powder, green chilies and salt to taste.
Step 3: Mix all the spices & aromatics evenly with the chicken and keep it marinated for an hour preferably in the refrigerator.
Step 4: After an hour, heat oil in a wok/kadai or skillet. Once oil is warm, add the curry leaves and all the whole spices mentioned under tempering – cumin seeds, kalonji/nigella seeds, dry red chilies, mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Let them crackle for a minute.
Step 5: Then add the marinated chicken along with all the marinated liquid. Sauté the chicken on high heat for a couple of minutes until the chicken warms up.
Step 6: Now lower the heat to minimum, cover the kadai/skillet and let the chicken cook on low heat. Stir every five minutes to avoid sticking.
Step 7: You need not add water as the chicken will release a lot of water and cook in its own liquid, but if it sticks too much then add water in splashes, not too much at a time.
Step 8: Continue cooking the chicken until it is completely cooked through; it would take about 25 to 30 minutes on low heat.
Step 9: Check the doneness of the chicken by cutting it using your stirring spatula. Also check and adjust for seasoning if needed.
Step 10: Once your chicken achari is completely cooked, switch off the heat and transfer it to a serving platter. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves and a few curry leaves and serve warm.
Other delicious party starter chicken recipes from flavor quotient
- Chicken thigh – 500 gms, skinless & boneless
- Ginger paste – 1 tbsp
- Garlic paste – 1 tbsp
- Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
- Kashmiri red chilli powder – ½ tsp
- Regular hot red chilli powder - ½ tsp
- Cumin powder – 1 tsp
- Coriander powder – 1 tsp
- Lemon juice – 4 to 5 tbsp (approximately 2 lemons)
- Dry mango powder – ½ tsp
- Green chilies – 2 to 3, cut into half lengthwise
- Salt to taste
- Fresh coriander leaves to garnish
- Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
- Kalonji/Nigella seeds/onion seeds – ¼ tsp
- Dry red chilies – 4
- Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
- Fenugreek seeds – ¼ tsp
- Oil – 4 to 5 tbsp
- Curry leaves – 6 to 8
- Cut each chicken thigh filet into 2-inch cubes. Wash and drain out all the excess water.
- Take the chicken pieces in a large mixing bowl. Add all the ingredients listed for marinating - ginger paste, garlic paste, kashmiri & regular red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, lemon juice, dry mango powder, green chilies and salt to taste.
- Mix all the spices & aromatics evenly with the chicken and keep it marinated for an hour preferably in the refrigerator.
- After an hour, heat oil in a wok/kadai or skillet. Once oil is warm, add the curry leaves and all the whole spices mentioned under tempering - cumin seeds, kalonji/nigella seeds, dry red chilies, mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Let them crackle for a minute.
- Then add the marinated chicken along with all the marinated liquid. Sauté the chicken on high heat for a couple of minutes until the chicken warms up.
- Now lower the heat to minimum, cover the kadai/skillet and let the chicken cook on low heat. Stir every five minutes to avoid sticking.
- You need not add water as the chicken will release a lot of water and cook in its own liquid, but if it sticks too much then add water in splashes, not too much at a time.
- Continue cooking the chicken until it is completely cooked through; it would take about 25 to 30 minutes on low heat.
- Check the doneness of the chicken by cutting it using your stirring spatula. Also check and adjust for seasoning if needed.
- Once your chicken achari is completely cooked, switch off the heat and transfer it to a serving platter. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves and a few curry leaves and serve warm. Enjoy!
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