Ingredients

1. Chicken – 500 gms
2. Mustard oil – 4 tbsp
3. Garlic cloves (crushed) – 5
4. Dry chillies (broken into pieces) - 2
5. Onion seeds – 1/4 to 1/2 tsp
6. Methi seeds (fenugreek seeds) – 1/4 tsp
7. Onion (big) – 1
8. Ginger paste – 3 tsp
9. Chilli powder – 2 tsp
10. Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
11. Curd – 1/4 cup or 5 tbsp
12. Water – 3/4 cup
13. Salt - as per taste
14. Green chillies – 5 to 6
15. Lemon juice – 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp
16. Coriander leaves (optional) – few

Achari masala (pickle masala)

17. Coriander seeds – 1 tbsp
18. Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
19. Saunf seeds (aniseed) – 2 tsp
20. Onion seeds (kalonji) – 1/2 tsp
21. Methi seeds (fenugreek) – 1/4 tsp
22. Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
23. Salt - as per taste
24. Lemon juice – 4 tsp

Method

Preparing the Achari masala (pickle masala)

1. Grind onion into smooth paste and crush garlic, keep it aside.
2. Roast all the spices except turmeric powder and lemon juice, on medium or lower flame, till aroma and flavour comes from it.
3. Let it cool and ground it to powder form, in a pestle mortal or spice grinder.
4. Take a bowl or plate, add the grounded spice masala, turmeric powder, salt and lemon juice, mix it well and keep it ready.

Cooking

5. Slit the green chillies and remove seeds from it.
6. Fill the spice mixture inside the chilli and the remaining spice masala, keep it aside.
7. Preheat the vessel with mustard oil, you need to make mustard oil very hot first smoky, and then reduce the mustard oil temperatue, as if garlic is added in a very hot oil then it can burnt, let the temperature of the oil be slightly hot.
8. Add garlic and dry chillies in the hot oil, when it starts sizzling, add Methi seeds and onion seeds, let it splutter for few seconds, do not burn garlic, as it can give bitter taste.
9. Add onion paste and ginger paste, water1/3rd cup, cook for 5min on medium flame, till its colour changes to golden colour.
10. Add chilli powder, turmeric powder and roast for few seconds and immediately add chicken, mix well for 1 to 2min.
11. Add remaining Achari masala (1tsp to 11/2tsp) and roast for 3 to 4min, can add little water if spices are burning.
12. Can reduce the flame in between while stirring.
13. Add curd, water 1/2cup, salt mix well and cook for 10 to 12min, till the chicken is cooked by closing the lid, in between stir the chicken.
14. If the chicken gravy is very thick can add 1/3rd cup water, as per your consistency and add the stuffed green chillies.
15. When the chicken is cooked and starts leaving oil, add the stuffed chillies on top, lemon juice, with little oil mustard or vegetable oil 1tbsp, close the lid and cook on simmer for 10min.
16. After 10min, Achari Murg is ready to serve; the chillies are soft and can see oil on top as we see in the pickle.
17. Serve with Naan or plain rice.

Notes

1. If the chicken gravy becomes very thick can add little water as per your consistency and cook.
2. I have added mustard oil for cooking, but in the end I have used both vegetable or sunflower oil 1tbsp and mustard oil 1 tbsp for cooking.
3. Can reduce the oil and chilli as per your taste.
4. Can cook the Achari chicken in the style of Achari paneer or any recipe related to Achari which Iam posting later.
5. Sometimes I add tomato puri or paste 1tbsp (ready made, concentrated one), for the colour, in the onion paste.
6. Can add ginger and garlic paste instead of ginger paste and in the end can add ginger julinne few slices.