What is Chicken Salli?
Chicken Salli is a Parsi delicacy and the word “salli” refers to the potato stick. The dish is referred by different names, apart from the common Chicken Salli. Jardaloo Salli Marghi (“Jordaloo” means apricot, “Salli” are the potato stick and “Marghi” means chicken, Murgh Salli, Salli Boti (here “Boti” refers to red meat), are few of the names I am aware of. The recipe calls for chicken or read meat that is cooked in aromatic spices, dried apricots and then topped with fried matchstick potatoes. My Bengali taste buds always gets drawn towards meat cooked with potatoes and this unique concept of topping curry with fries was so interesting and unique.
Not so authentic Chicken Salli
After reading a few recipes, I decided to go with my own flow which definitely made the curry little different. I didn’t add apricot, and I added a lot of warm spices like cinnamon powder and nutmeg. This Murgh Salli turned out so warm and rich from slow cooking. The dish became a favorite in my family.
How to prepare Chicken Salli
Chicken Salli is a one pot chicken curry. Marinate the chicken with ginger, garlic, white vinegar (or yogurt), cumin powder, coriander powder, dried fenugreek and chili powder. Next day when you prepare the curry, start by adding whole spices (cinnamon sticks, cardamom, bay leaves and cloves). For any good chicken or mutton curry, make sure you add a little bit of sugar for the beautiful caramel color and brown the onion before adding the marinated chicken. Once the chicken is stir-fried for a while, add the tomato puree, cinnamon powder and grate nutmeg. (This particular step of adding cinnamon powder and nutmeg is not common in chicken curries, but it adds such an amazing warmth, that you will love it!) I add a little water and then slow cook until the chicken is cooked through.
What about Salli (Potato Fries)
Salli refers to the fried potato sticks or potato straws. You could buy fried matchstick potatoes and top the curry with it while serving or prepare fresh at home. I use a knife to finely chop the potatoes. You could definitely use a processor too. Then soak the matchstick potatoes in water with little salt for about 30 minutes. Then drain and layer on a kitchen towel and pat dry. Next fry in hot oil until golden brown. Once done sprinkle little salt on the fried potatoes and shake it to mix it around. I prefer frying the matchstick potatoes just before serving. The Chicken Salli has a lot of flavor from all the spices and the color turns out so rich and gorgeous. We enjoyed it with Naan and my 6 years old was the happiest to find fries with chicken curry.
Check out other Chicken Curries Recipes
