Mangalorean Chicken Sukka

Preeti Nayak’s Mangalorean Chicken Sukka, also called Kori Sukka, is a semi-dry Konkani chicken curry with a freshly prepared spice mixture and roasted coconut. Her selected recipe uses bone-in chicken and serves it with the recommended steamed rice and dal.

The chicken is marinated with salt, lemon juice and turmeric. Ginger and garlic are crushed separately in a mortar and pestle. Byadagi red chillies and whole coriander, fennel, mustard, cumin, fenugreek, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves and star anise are dry-roasted and cooled on a plate.

Garlic and curry leaves are fried in a little oil and join the roasted spices. Coconut is roasted separately and kept on its own plate. The cooled spice ingredients are ground with turmeric and tamarind without added water, while the coconut is reserved for later.

Oil and ghee heat in a cooking pan before red onions are sautéed, followed by curry leaves and the crushed ginger-garlic mixture. The marinated chicken cooks covered over low heat with occasional stirring and water only if needed. Part of the prepared sukka masala and separate water are added for a further covered simmer, with salt, water or more of the same masala adjusting the mixture as needed.

The roasted coconut is mixed in with the documented little sprinkle of water and cooked briefly on high heat. Optional finishing ghee is mixed through, then coriander leaves complete the curry before it is removed from heat for the rice-and-dal presentation.