Maharashtrian Chicken Sukka recipe with step-by-step photos and a video recipe. Chicken sukka is a semi-dry chicken curry from Maharashtrian cuisine. I had tried many recipes from Maharashtrian cuisine and all of them taste awesome. Maharashtrian cuisine is the cuisine of the Marathi people from the Maharashtra state of India.
I tried this dry chicken curry first time at my friend's home and it's super tasty. She served it with bhakri (rice flour chapati) and varan bhat (Dal & steamed rice). It is a mildly spicy dish and tastes delicious.
About this chicken sukka recipe
The best part of making this chicken curry is that you don't need any store-bought masala. I have shown an easy homemade sukka masala recipe.
Simply mix the chicken with the prepared masala and slow cook it on a low heat. The chicken absorbs all the flavors of the spicy masala. You can serve this dry chicken curry as a side dish with steamed rice & dal or Chapati/Bhakri (Indian flatbread).
In this post, I am sharing the recipe of chicken sukka that I got from my Maharashtrian friend. This is the way they make it at home.
If you are not able to arrange all the whole spices to make this chicken curry then simply add the store-bought chicken masala powder in the recipe.
You may also like some other popular Chicken recipes from this website
- Chicken 65
- Chili Chicken
- Chicken Tikka Masala
- Quick Chicken Biryani in the pressure cooker
- Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani recipe
- Chicken Ghee Roast
Ingredients Notes
- Chicken - You can add either chicken with bone or boneless chicken. Chicken with bone have more flavor.
- Dried Red chilies - I have used byadagi red chilies to make this chicken recipe. It gives a mild spicy kick and a bright red color to the sukka. You can use any dried red chilies you have. Adjust the quantity as per the spiciness of red chilies.
- Curd/Yogurt - Use fresh curd or yogurt. If the yogurt is sour then do not add lemon juice while marinating the chicken.
- Poppy seeds - If it is not available skip adding it.
How to make Maharashtrian Chicken sukka with step by step photos
Marinate the chicken
- In a mixing bowl, combine chicken, ginger garlic paste, curd, lemon juice, salt, turmeric powder & red chili powder. Cover and keep it aside for 30 minutes.
Prepare Sukka Masala
- Heat a thick bottomed pan with 2 teaspoon of oil in it over medium heat.
- Add onions and saute until translucent.
- Next, add garlic cloves and saute until the onion are golden.
- Add desiccated coconut & roast until coconut is light golden in color.
- Add white sesame seeds & poppy seeds. Fry for 2 minutes. Transfer it to a plate.
- In the same pan roast coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds & fenugreek seeds until aromatic. Transfer to the same plate.
- Dry roast red chilies until it puffs up and becomes crisp. Remove and transfer it to the same plate.
- In the same pan, add 1 teaspoon oil and roast all the whole spices for a minute. Remove and transfer it to the plate.
- Let all the roasted ingredients cool down completely.
- Transfer it to a mixer/grinder jar. Add turmeric powder. Grind it without adding water. Sukka masala powder is ready.
Making chicken sukka
- Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a deep bottom pan over low medium heat. Add bay leaves and dried red chilies. Fry it for a minute.
- Next, add onions and fry them on high heat until golden in color.
- Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are soft and pulpy.
- Add the marinated chicken and fry it for 5 minutes.
- To this add half of the prepared sukka masala and mix it well with the chicken.
- Saute until oil starts to separate from the masala.
- Add ¼ cup of water and salt to it. Be careful while adding salt, we have already added salt while marinating the chicken. Taste the masala and add the salt accordingly.
- Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. Stir in between. If required, you can add 1-2 tablespoon of water. Do not add more water.
- After 15 minutes, chicken will be cooked.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. If you want to make it more spicy, you can add more of the sukka masala powder.
- Finally, add lemon juice, coriander leaves & mix.
- Cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Stir as required. Switch off the flame.
- Chicken sukka is ready to serve. Serve it hot with Bhakri/Chapati/Rice.
Tips to make Perfect Chicken Sukka
- Marinating the chicken keeps it soft and juicy after cooking.
- Roast all the ingredients on low to medium heat.
- Be careful while adding water to the recipe. This is a semi-dry chicken recipe and therefore you should not add too much water at any stage of cooking.
- While you cover and cook the sukka, stir it in between to avoid the spices from burning.
- Add the prepared sukka masala powder as per taste. Increase the quantity to make it spicy.
- For this recipe, I have used half of the sukka masala. You can store the remaining masala in an airtight container and keep it in the freezer. Stays good for a month.
- Traditionally, this chicken curry recipe is made in ghee/clarified butter instead of oil. This gives a nice aroma and flavor to the dish.
- If you can arrange then add Kanda lasun masala to this chicken recipe. It enhances the flavor of the dish. It gives it a spicy kick and bright red color. But in this post, I am not using it as it is not easily available at all places.
- Updated this recipe to make it easy and more flavorful.
Other Maharashtrian Recipes You Might Like
- Maharashtrian sabudana khichdi
- Puran Poli
- Maharashtrian rava ladoo
- Mahrashtrian prawn curry (Kolambi rassa)
- Sabudana vada
- Sabudana thalipeeth
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Chicken Sukka Recipe
Maharashtrian Chicken Sukka recipe
Equipment
- Heavy bottom pan or wok
Ingredients
To marinate the chicken
- 500 gram chicken cut into cubes
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- 2 tablespoon curd/yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- salt to taste
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon Byadagi red chili powder if not available use Kashmiri red chili powder or any red chili powder but add as per taste
For making chicken masala
- 2 teaspoon oil
- 1 onion sliced
- 5 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup desiccated dry coconut
- 1 teaspoon white sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 10 byadagi red chilies
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
Whole spices
- 4 cloves
- 10 black peppercorns
- 1 blade mace
- 1- inch cinnamon
- 2 green cardamoms
- 1 black cardamom
- small piece nutmeg
Other ingredients
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 dried red chilies optional
- 2 onions chopped
- 1 tomato chopped
- salt to taste
- coriander leaves
- 2 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
Marinate the chicken
- In a mixing bowl, combine chicken, ginger garlic paste, curd, lemon juice, salt, turmeric powder & red chili powder. Cover and keep it aside for 30 minutes.
Prepare Sukka Masala
- Heat a thick bottomed pan with 2 teaspoon oil in it over medium heat.
- Add onions and saute until translucent.
- Next, add garlic cloves and saute until the onion are golden.
- Add desiccated coconut & roast until coconut is light golden in color.
- Add white sesame seeds & poppy seeds. Fry for 2 minutes. Transfer it to a plate.
- In the same pan roast coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds & fenugreek seeds until aromatic. Transfer to the same plate.
- Dry roast red chilies until it puffs up and becomes crisp. Remove and transfer it to the same plate.
- In the same pan, add 1 teaspoon oil and roast all the whole spices for a minute. Remove and transfer it to the plate.
- Let all the roasted ingredients cool down completely.
- Transfer it to a mixer/grinder jar. Add turmeric powder. Grind it without adding water. Sukka masala powder is ready.
Making the chicken sukka
- Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a deep bottom pan over low medium heat. Add bay leaves and dried red chilies. Fry it for a minute.
- Next, add onions and fry it on high heat until golden in color.
- Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are soft and pulpy.
- Add the marinated chicken and fry it for 5 minutes.
- To this add half of the prepared sukka masala and mix it well with the chicken.
- Saute until oil starts to separate from the masala.
- Add ¼ cup of water and salt to it. Be careful while adding salt, we have already added salt while marinating the chicken. Taste the masala and add the salt accordingly.
- Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. Stir in between. If required, you can add 1-2 tablespoon of water. Do not add more water.
- After 15 minutes, chicken will be cooked.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. If you want to make it more spicy, you can add more of the sukka masala powder.
- Finally, add lemon juice, coriander leaves & mix.
- Cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Stir as required. Switch off the flame.
- Chicken sukka is ready to serve. Serve it hot with Bhakri/Chapati/Rice.
Notes
- Marinating the chicken keeps it soft and juicy after cooking.
- Roast all the ingredients on low to medium heat.
- Be careful while adding water to the recipe. It is a semi-dry recipe and therefore you should not add too much water at any stage of cooking.
- While you cover and cook the sukkah, stir it in between to avoid burning spices.
- Add the prepared sukka masala powder as per taste. Increase the quantity to make it spicy.
- For this recipe, I have used half of the sukka masala. You can store the remaining masala in an airtight container and keep it in the freezer. Stays good for a month.
- Traditionally, this Chicken recipe is made in ghee/clarified butter instead of oil. This gives a nice aroma and flavor to the dish.
- If you can arrange then add Kanda lasun masala for the sukka. It enhances the flavor of the dish. But in this post, I am not using it as it is not easily available at all places.
- Updated this recipe to make it easy and more flavorful.
Ariya
Tried yesterday. Came out well. Thanks 4 sharing.
Preeti Nayak
Thanks for the feedback
SURESHBABU
recipe looking so nice and fascinating.
Sherri
Absolutely fantastic recipe. The masala was out of this world.
Preeti
Thanks a lot. Glad you liked it. Thanks for the star ratings.