Chicken 65 is a tasty south Indian snack of crispy fried spicy chicken tossed in a delicious tangy garlic sauce and the flavours are incredible! It makes a wonderful starter and it is perfect for entertaining.
In a large bowl mix together all the ingredients for the marinade: 1 teaspoon red chilli powder, 1 teaspoon grated garlic, 1 teaspoon grated ginger, ½ teaspoon garam masala, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, 1 tablespoon all purpose flour, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 3 tablespoons coconut milk, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Add 1 kilo boneless chicken and mix to coat the chicken evenly. Cover and leave the chicken to marinate for 1 hour.
Frying in a skillet
Heat the vegetable oil for frying in a large heavy bottomed skillet on high heat and fry the chicken in batches. Transfer the cooked chicken to kitchen paper to absorb excess oil.
Using in an air fryer
Preheat the air fryer to 200℃/400℉ for 3 minutes. Cook the chicken in batches: arrange chicken in the basket like in a frying pan, so they don't touch or overlap. Set the timer to cook for 8 minutes then remove the cooked chicken from the basket and repeat with the rest of the chicken.
Sauce
In a large pan on medium-low heat, dry toast 1 teaspoon mustard seeds for a minute then add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 2 Kashmiri red chilli, 2 medium green chillies, 2 cloves garlic, ½ salt salt and 10 curry leaves. Lightly fry the spices for around 30 seconds then turn the heat to low, stirring in 140 grams Greek yogurtook for another 30 seconds.
Add the chicken and stir gently for 1-2 minutes till all the chicken is well coated in the sauce then remove from the heat.
Cool slightly before tasting for seasoning and add more salt if required. Garnish with 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.
Notes
Marinate the chicken - If the kitchen is cool (around 15-25℃ or 59-77℉), you can leave the chicken to marinate on the counter, otherwise keep in the fridge and remove 30 minutes to bring to room temperature before cooking.To check if the oil is hot enough for frying - dip a wooden spoon and if bubbles form around it, you can start frying.Frying the chicken - keep the pieces spaced apart to enable even heat distribution and they cook uniformly.Serve immediately.Store leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 2 days.To reheat, place on a baking tray and bake at 200℃/400℉ for 5-10 minutes.