Chicken Dhansak Recipe
Chicken Dhansak is a popular Parsi curry, where chicken is cooked with lentils, spices, and vegetables to make a rich, flavorful sauce. Here's an easy recipe to make this restaurant-style dish at home with step by step photos and a recipe video. Best enjoyed with naan or steamed rice.
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 318kcal
Equipment
- 1 Heavy bottom pan or skillet
- 1 Deep bottom pot
Ingredients
For Dhansak Dal
- ¼ cup moong dal split green gram
- ¼ cup toor dal yellow split pigeon peas
- ¼ cup masoor dal red lentils
- ½ cup onions
- ¾ cup Pumpkin
- ½ cup Brinjal Aubergine
- 1 cup tomatoes
- ½ cup coriander leaves
- ½ cup fenugreek leaves
- ¼ cup mint leaves
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- salt to taste
For Dhansak Masala
- 1.5 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- ½ star anise
- 4 green cardamoms
- 6 cloves
- 1- inch cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- a small piece of nutmeg
For Chicken Dhansak Curry
- 1 cup onions finely chopped
- 2 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste.
- 2 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder add as per taste
- 1 teaspoon spicy red chili powder add as per taste
- 3 teaspoon prepared dhansak masala if using store bought add 2 teaspoon masala
- 600 g boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into cubes
- salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon tamarind paste (or tamarind pulp) substitute 2 teaspoon lemon juice
- coriander leaves
Instructions
Cook Dhansak Dal
- Rinse the dals (moong, toor, masoor) 2–3 times and soak in water for 1 hour. Drain.
- In a pressure cooker, add the soaked dals, chopped onions, pumpkin, brinjal (aubergine), tomatoes, coriander, fenugreek, and mint leaves. Sprinkle in turmeric and salt. Mix well.
- Add 3.5 cups of water. Close the lid. Cook on medium heat for 4-5 whistles. Remove from heat.
- Once the pressure is released, mash the dal with the back of the ladle. Or grind it to a fine paste using hand blender.
- If you don’t have a pressure cooker, use a deep-bottom pan with a lid. Cook the lentils on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until they are soft and fully cooked.
Prepare Dhansak Masala
- In a heavy-bottomed pan, dry roast coriander seeds, cumin, black peppercorns, star anise, green cardamoms, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaf on medium-low heat until fragrant. Stir continuously to avoid burning.
- Transfer to a plate and let it cool to room temperature.
- Transfer the spices to a mixer or spice grinder. Add a small piece of nutmeg. Grind everything into a fine powder. Your homemade Dhansak masala is ready.
Cooking Chicken Dhansak
- Heat 2 tablespoon of ghee and 1 tablespoon of oil in a pot over medium heat.
- Add onions and sauté until onions are transparent.
- Add ginger-garlic paste and sauté for 2 minutes or until raw smell from ginger and garlic leaves.
- Add Kashmiri red chili powder, spicy red chili powder, and 3 teaspoon homemade Dhansak masala (or 2 teaspoon if using store-bought). Sauté on medium-low heat for 30 seconds.
- Add 2-3 tablespoon of water and combine. Cook the masala until it starts to release oil from the sides. Addition of water prevents the masala from burning. Repeat the process and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the masala starts to release oil from the sides.
- Add chicken and salt. Sauté until the color of chicken turns from pink to white. Cover and cook on medium-low heat until fully cooked, stirring occasionally.
- Add ¼ cup of water, mashed dal and tamarind pulp. Stir to combine. Cover and cook on low heat for 10 minutes. Stir it in between as required.
- Taste the gravy and adjust the salt and spices as per taste. You can add water to adjust the consistency of the curry to your liking.
- Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve chicken dhansak with Naan or Steamed rice, and a lemon wedge.
Video
Notes
- Dry roast whole spices on low-medium heat, stirring often to avoid burning.
- Stir cooked dal regularly, it can stick to the pan.
- No pressure cooker? Cook dal in water until soft in a pan/pot. Soak lentils for 2 hours or overnight to reduce cooking time.
- With a pressure cooker, soaking is optional, lentils cooks quickly. Still I prefer to soak them for at least an hour.
- No hand blender? Let dal cool, then grind in small batches in a mixer/grinder without water.
- Curry thickens over time. Add water to adjust consistency before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 318kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 480mg | Potassium: 1455mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 3093IU | Vitamin C: 128mg | Calcium: 323mg | Iron: 12mg