Lagan Ka Keema

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Keema or mince is one of the most popular dishes from India. Almost every state has a version of this keema. It can be either chicken or mutton keema.

My favourite keema recipe is from the delectable, delicate cuisines of Nawabs of Lucknow. From Awadhi Cuisine!

Awadhi Cuisine, The Cuisine From City of Nawabs is a real treasure of India! Besides knowing and awarded as the Finest Cuisine of India it is also quite complex to cook. It is filled with delicate flavours, rich taste and definitely needs some culinary dexterity.

I have been trying to master some of the dishes (which also happens to be my husbands favourites) from this cuisine and one of the dishes I have perfected is this Lagan Ka Keema, literally means Chicken Mince cooked in Lagan (wide round pan). When I came across with this recipe, I though it’s not that difficult to make and doesn’t need that many skills but whenI cooked it for the first time, god almighty, I was amazed by the flavours and taste. Since then this is a favourite dish in our family.

The original recipe is made with mutton but the recipe I am sharing is made with chicken thigh minced.

This is my take on the original recipe and I have taught this to many students in Tokyo and have received a wonderful response.

Do give this recipe a try!

Ingredients:

500 g minced chicken
2 tbsp ghee
2 onions thinly sliced
1 tbsp poppy seeds
A big pinch of saffron
1 tsp milk
1 tbsp each ginger and garlic paste
¼ cup mint leaves chopped
¼ cup coriander leaves chopped
½ cup thick yoghurt
1 ½ tbsp or to taste red chilli powder
1 tsp caraway seeds

1 tsp cumin powder
¼ tsp cardamom powder
½ tsp all spice powder
4 cloves
1 inch cinnamon stick
4 green cardamom
2 black cardamom
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt
Fried onion for garnishing
Smoked coal and 1 tsp ghee for dhuni method .

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius or 350 Farherinheit.

Soak saffron in warm milk.

Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a heavy ovenproof pan, add the onions for 7-10 minutes till they are golden brown and crispy. Take them out and keep half of the onions aside.

Take half and make a fine puree with cloves, cinnamon stick and poppy seeds.

Heat another 1 tbsp ghee, add in the green and black cardamom and caraway seeds. Let the seeds splutter, now add the onion paste, ginger-garlic paste and yoghurt. Sauté it for 2 -4 minutes.

Add in all the spice powders and minced chicken. Add in the saffron and fry the minced chicken for 5 minutes.

Add the chopped mint and coriander, mix it well.

Spread the chicken evenly and bake it for 15-20 minutes in the preheated oven.

Dhuni:

In the end heat the charcoal piece till it’s red. Place a onion skin in the middle of dish, drizzle some oil to create smoke. Put the lid on and keep it close for 10 minutes. Open, discard the charcoal, garnish it with rest of the brown onion and coriander.

Serve hot with parathas!

Gayatri Singh