Kibti

Lost Recipes of India, Episode 3

Lost Recipes of India is a new series by Honest Cooks, where we revisit Indian recipes that have been lost in translation OR have been forgotten entirely. Today we are looking at Kibti.

Kibti, a regal dish from the royal kitchens of Patiala, is a flavorful appetizer dish that is made with chicken, yogurt, some spices, and is garnished with almonds. Invented in the royal courts of Patiala, under Maharaja Bhupinder Singh's reign, Kibti has exquisitely layered flavors.

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This dish is made by marinating chicken in yogurt, along with some spices and aromatics. The chicken is then cooked in ghee or clarified butter, and finished with a pinch of saffron. The flavors are built with each step and the spices are added are certain stages of the cooking process to ensure the dish has a very complex flavor profile.

For a vegetarian version, this recipe can be made with baby potatoes, button mushrooms, or even paneer (cottage cheese).

Ingredients:

The ingredients that are used in this recipe are:

1. Chicken thighs : 1 lb

2. Yogurt : 4 tbsp

3. Black peppercorn : 10-12 pc

4. Cloves : 5 pc

5. Green Cardamom : 5 pc

6. Ginger : 1 inch pc

7. Garlic : 5-6 cloves

8. Green chilies : 3-4 pcs

9. Red chili powder : 1tsp

10. Coriander powder : 1 tsp

11. Salt, 1 tsp, or to taste

12. Red onions : 4 oz

13. Saffron : a few strands, OPTIONAL

14. Ghee or clarified butter : 3 tbsp to start and 1 tbsp to finish with

15. Almonds, for garnish : 12- 15 pcs

Directions:

1. Place the yogurt on a coffee filter, in a strainer, and allow the excess water to drain out.

2. Make a paste of the ginger, garlic, chilies.

3. Make a fine powder of the whole spices. If you are looking to buy a Spice Grinder, we recommend the one we use: https://amzn.to/3lma0RQ

4. Thinly sliced the red onions, and soak the almonds in 1 cup of water.

5. Cut the chicken in smaller pieces.

6. When the water is released from the yougurt, transfer it to a bowl, add the freshly ground spiced to this. Don't add red chili powder and coriander powder yet.

7. Add the ginger, garlic, chili paste, and salt. Mix well.

8. Then, add the chicken to this. Mix and set in the fridge to marinade for ~ 40 mins.

9. In the meantime, peel and chop the almonds.

10. When 40 mins have passed, remove chicken from the fridge.

11. In a pan, take ghee and heat it. When hot, add the almonds and give it a light fry to get rid of the rawness.

12. Remove almonds and in the same pan, place the chicken and spread it out to ensure browning. Save the leftover marinade in the bowl.

13. Don't flip too often, let it brown.

14. When it has color on one side, flip and cook the other side.

15. Add leftover marinade and red onions and cook the onions.

16. When the onions have melted into the chicken, add red chili powder and coriander powder. Mix well

17. Add in the last dollop of ghee and saffron and mix well.

18. Plate and garnish with almonds.

19. Serve hot!

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