Pakistan – Shahi Murgh Chollay

by Dahiza Umar

WHAT IS SHAHI MURGH CHOLLAY?

Shahi murgh chollay is a very unique Punjabi cuisine of Pakistan loved by every single person especially of the region. Punjab is actually a curry made up of white chickpea and chicken. Even you can use mutton or beef but traditionally this dish is cooked in chicken so, the name comes from the MURGH means CHICKEN in urdu and CHOLLAY is known as Chickpea, either white chickpea or black. But in this, we use traditionally white chickpea and chicken to made this amazing loved dish. The word SHAHI means ROYAL in urdu, this dish has name come from the old traditional dish at the time of ROYALS, so the whole name of the dish is SHAHI MURGH CHOLLAY. If we translate this name into english version we can say, Royal Chickpea and Chicken curry.

INTRODUCTION TO THE DISH

This dish is made from two main ingredients like chicken. But in some areas people may replace the meat of chicken in this dish with mutton or even beef that comes out with the totally different flavor and even more juicy. Traditionally, chicken is used in this dish and chickpea usually used white to make this amazing curry. It has very thick consistency but at some places, this dish is served of the very thin stock like consistency of the gravy with chickpea and chicken in it.

LAHORI STREET FOOD

When it comes to mind about the street food of Lahore, you cannot even come out with saying CHIKAR CHANNY. It is typically a dish made up of chollay and chicken and can be served with amazing flavors, spices and loved by the young generations. You can just have a plate of this dish amazed with any sort of bread even with naan and enjoy the feast. The small stalls of murgh chollay are on the road side to attract the visitors by having the amazing aromas comes out to with palatable dish.

PUNJABI CUISINE

Punjabi cuisine is so amazingly flavored and with the used of original authentic spices is just like killing the the visitors to enjoy the dish made of freshly prepared DESI GHEE. The use of freshly roasted spices and and the cooking pot is CLAY POT on WOODEN FIRE is giving the flavors of the original old tradition. The flavors of the food cooked on fire with woods is just to next other level.

TIME REQUIRED

• Preparation time : 10 minutes
• Cooking time : 45 minutes
• Total time : 1 hour

NUTRITIONAL ASPECTS

• Calories : 322
• fat : 19 grams
• Protein : 70 grams
• Carbohydrates : 72 grams

SERVED WITH

This dish is made in this way that it can be served with any sort of bread like:

• Plain bread
• khameri roti
• Naan
• Kulchay

It can even eaten with rice:

• Plain rice
• Zeera rice
• Boiled rice

and the complementary side things are:

• Salad
• Mango pickle
• Mint raita
• Sliced onions
• Lassi

INGREDIENTS

• Chicken : 1 kilogram
• chickpea : 1/2 kilograms
• Onions : 2 large
• tomatoes :
• Garlic paste : 4 tbsp
• Ginger paste : 5 tbsp
• Green chilies : 5 to 7
• Yogurt : 2 cups
• salt : 1 tbps
• Red pepper : 2 tbsp
• turmeric powder : 1 tsp
• cumin powder : 3 tbsp
• Coriander powder : 1 tbsp
• green fresh coriander : 5 tbsp
• ginger sliced : 2 tbsp
• mint : 3 tbsp
• oil (desi ghee ) : 1/2 cup

METHOD OF COOKING

• Take a large cooking pot and add water about 2 liter and add 1 tbsp of salt and boil it, after boiling add chickpea into it and boil them until softened and tendered.
• On oil on the pot and add slices of onion into it, sauted it until translucent and add garlic ginger paste.
• Fry it for 2 minutes until garlic ginger browned , add tomatoes into it and lower the flame so the juices of tomatoes infuses into the mixture.
• now add 1 glass of water into the mixture and add chicken into it with all the spices and put it on low flame to make the mixture assemble with chicken and curry.
• Now when chicken is properly tendered and soften add yogurt into it.
• Sauted it for 10 minutes until moisture dried and curry is prepared.
• At point add boiled soften chickpea and let it simmer on low flame for 10 minutes.
• Served by adding fresh coriander and mint over it with cut green chilies and ginger slices
• ENJOY !

CUISINE : ASIAN, PAKISTAN

COURSE : MAIN COURSE

SERVINGS : 4 TO 6 PERSON