Turmeric chicken with curry leaves
Last week, I chanced upon a beautiful food blog with photos of a very simple recipe that caught my eye.
Turmeric chicken is a simple yet delicious recipe, whether roasted, grilled or deep-fried. This recipe is often cooked at home or found at banana leaf curry houses in Malaysia. Just looking at the photos of the delicious chicken pieces transported me back to familiar curry joints in Kuala Lumpur that often deep-fry pieces of chicken drumsticks and chicken wings to a deep golden brown with the fragrant aromas of turmeric.
So, for the last week or so, Mysaucepan and I have been “chickening around”, trying a few variations to the turmeric chicken recipe. I used a relatively low heat oven of 180 degrees Celcius to slow-bake the chicken and also experimented with the combination of baking and grilling the chicken in the oven at the same time.
Since then, I am reinvigorated by this humble recipe which has been overlooked and using this simple recipe made me realised how much I have missed the taste of succulent and juicy chicken.
I tried three recipes which were very similar in terms of the spices and cooking styles and they all turned out great, although one was a standout among the three.
Chicken pieces marinating with turmeric and curry leaves
The raw chicken pieces look really appetizing with the curry leaves and turmeric fragrance even as it is being marinated.
So here are three recipes from our spoils over the last few days. Happy cooking!
Slow baked and grilled turmeric chicken with curry leaves Ingredients 6 – 8 pieces of chicken drumsticks and chicken wings Method 1. Mix turmeric powder, salt and white pepper in a large mixing bowl. * I used turmeric powder from Herbie’s Spices but I believe fresh turmeric will work just as well if not better. ** I tried the additional grill technique with the fan-forced oven but I believe it is not necessary. Moreover, some fan-forced ovens do not come with inside grillers. Slow baked turmeric chicken with curry powder Ingredients 6 – 8 pieces of chicken drumsticks and chicken wings Method 1. Mix turmeric powder, curry powder, salt and white pepper in a large mixing bowl. ** It is important to use a good brand of curry powder. I personally find the Baba’s meat curry powder brand to have fresh and fragrant aromas and a vibrant brown colour. Importantly, the aromas have a good ratio of all the important spices. Slow baked chicken with Green Valley chicken spices Ingredients 6 – 8 pieces of chicken drumsticks and chicken wings Method 1. Mix Green Valley chicken spices and salt in a large mixing bowl.
2 tablespoon turmeric powder or freshly grated turmeric*
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
2 sprigs of fresh curry leaves
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or vegetable oil
2. Add chicken into mixing bowl and marinate evenly with all the ingredients, adding 2 tablespoon of EVOO for at least 1 hour.
3. Arrange chicken on elevated stand in the roasting tray to render fat from the baking process.
Tip: Hook the tip of chicken wings under the elevated stand to prevent the wings from curling up during the baking process.
4. Heat up oven and grill (radiant heat grills from top of oven**) to 180 degrees Celcius for 10 minutes. Slow bake and grill the chicken pieces for approximately 40 – 50 minutes or until chicken pieces are golden brown on the outside.
5. Brush chicken pieces half way through the baking process to prevent meat from drying.
2 tablespoon turmeric powder or freshly grated turmeric*
1 tablespoon Baba’s curry powder**
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or vegetable oil
2. Add chicken into mixing bowl and marinate evenly with all the ingredients, adding 2 tablespoon of oyster sauce and EVOO for at least 1 hour.
3. Arrange chicken on elevated stand in the roasting tray to render fat from the baking process.
Tip: Hook the tip of chicken wings under the elevated stand to prevent the wings from curling up during the baking process.
4. Heat up oven to 180 degrees Celcius for 10 minutes. Slow bake and grill the chicken pieces for approximately 40 – 50 minutes or until chicken pieces are golden brown on the outside.
5. Brush chicken pieces half way through the baking process to prevent meat from drying.
3 tablespoon Green Valley chicken spices
1 tablespoon salt
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or vegetable oil
2. Add chicken into mixing bowl and marinate evenly with all the ingredients, adding 2 tablespoon of EVOO for at least 1 hour.
3. Arrange chicken on elevated stand in the roasting tray to render fat from the baking process.
Tip: Hook the tip of chicken wings under the elevated stand to prevent the wings from curling up during the baking process.
4. Heat up oven to 180 degrees Celcius for 10 minutes. Slow bake and grill the chicken pieces for approximately 40 – 50 minutes or until chicken pieces are golden brown on the outside.
5. Brush chicken pieces half way through the baking process to prevent meat from drying.
I had a great time trying out the three recipes above and I found that one really stood out.
Which of the three recipes would you try?
Slow baked turmeric chicken with curry leaves
Turmeric chicken with curry leaves - slow baked and grilled at 180 degrees Celcius
The skin of the turmeric chicken with curry leaves is crispy and the meat inside tender and succulent with beautiful aromas of the turmeric and curry leaves.
The grilling together with the baking process gave the chicken skill extra colour and perhaps a little bit more crispy but I really needed to monitor the cooking process to ensure the chicken is not overcooked.
2009 Indigo Riesling from Clare Valley, South Australia
Clare valley in South Australia produces some of Australia’s greatest rieslings.
I found the 2009 Sevenhill Inigo Riesling to be true to the characteristics of this region – dry fresh citrusy flavours with a hint of passionfruit in this particular wine.
I love this style of white wine because it is versatile and can be drank either with or without food.
This wine is a beautiful complement for the first recipe but a similar style riesling would have been just as good for the other two recipes too.
Slow baked turmeric chicken with curry powder
Slow baked turmeric and curry powder drumstick
The slow baked turmeric chicken with curry powder is wonderfully fragrant with the added spice aromas.
The skin is so dry and crispy it cracks as you bite into the drumstick. Eat all the crispy skin first the delve into the meat or leave the best part to the last. I like to eat both bits at once with each mouthful 
Slow baked turmeric and curry powder chicken
One of the best things about slow baking chicken is that all the fat is rendered below onto the baking paper and it is a lot healthier than deep frying chicken which will contain a higher amount of fat.
Slow baked turmeric and curry powder drumstick
The slow baking process makes the skin of the chicken dry and crispy but also tasty with a good marinade.
Green Valley spices for chicken
The Green Valley spices is the simplest of the three recipes because all you need added is a little salt and to brush the chicken pieces once at the middle of the baking process.
Marinating with Green Valley spices for chicken
The aroma of the Green Valley chicken spices is mild and I added a generous amount so the chicken pieces are covered with this beautiful spice as it marinates.
Slow baked chicken with Green Valley spices
The wings using the Green Valley chicken spices were crispy and succulent.
Slow baked chicken wings with Green Valley spices
Each wing is golden brown and the wing tips were tasty and crunchy at the same time.
Slow baked drumstick with Green Valley spices
How to tackle a succulent chicken wing – My favourite technique
Remove drumette from the wing
Chicken wings are delicious and so tasty and usually come piping hot.
Hold the wing by the head of the drumette and tear off the drumette from the wing.
Slow baked drumette with Green Valley spices
I like to start with the drumette because the meat is slightly firmer than the wing and we should always leave the most succulent bits to the last.
Tasty drumette meat stripped off
The texture of drumette meat is slightly firm but succulent and tasty with the right marinade.
Hold chicken wing by its elbow
I believe chicken wing lovers eat this cut of meat for its texture. The sliver-shaped meat is softer and more succulent than drumsticks.
Therefore, rather than gnawing a wing cross-section, I think the most delicious and effective way to eat chicken wings is to hold a wing by its elbow and then strip the meat off lengthwise with your front chompers. When you do this, you can taste the succulent slivers of chicken meat in one mouthful.
Don’t forget the wing tips as they are often very crispy and tasty from the slow bake and the small bones are crunchy as well.
Gone in one tasty mouthful!
So dear readers,
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Click on any of the photos to view ChopinandMysaucepan‘s favourite recipes or simply click here.
Check out my taste test verdict of the three recipes above in my next blog post.
Note of appreciation:
Thanks Mei Sze for the inspiration and to Heidi for the recipe plug-in.
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I overdid on turmeric powder once and it really turned me off that noble spice. I’ll have to try this recipe…perhaps it’ll recover back my appreciate for it! The last chicken I had was poached…it’s been a long time since I had crispy wings…fried or non-fried!
This is a great idea for an unusual (for me) roasted chicken. Moreover, I am sure my husband would like the addition of spices (I usually only use herbs)! I don’t know which one was the tastiest (they all sound delicious to me), but I vote for the one made with curry leaves as I love the aroma of curry leaves!
That chicken looks delicious (and the step by steps make me feel like I’ve eaten it too)! And my mum uses Baba’s curry powder and swears by it too! “D
whoa so much chicken baking! i would love to try all 3 of them
All 3 look very delicious. Its difficult to pick a favourite.
I most certainly agree with you – frying chicken is so painstaikingly hard plus unhealthy! And I find I still get that crunch from roasting chicken by dredging the chicken in flour first. These look amazing too… and yes even the raw chicken looks appetising already!
What a great post! That’s great that you made the chicken 3 different ways to show us the differences. I’ve never had Turmeric Chicken…it looks so good. I especially like the looks of the Curry Leaf one ;o) Thanks for sharing all your recipes!
Hmmmm…. I feel like chicken tonight. Thank you
You have left me with my mouthwatering for a piece of chicken!
I love turmeric – I can never have enough. And I think my hubby would love this chicken dish. Thank you for sharing – the photos are gorgeous!
Wow, I’d want to combine all three into one. Take the curry leaves from the first, the crisp skin technique from the second and the seasoning of the third. I bet that would be dynamite. 😉
I think I will save all these three recipes and try them at different times..such a keeper post!! I love the fact that the chicken is slow roasted so it wont be dry and chewy. I m a big fan of crisp skin myself of baked chicken..all the recipes..thumbs up!!
Have a fab weekend!
I love how you’ve paid homage to the turmeric chicken; in all aspects! From the variations with their flavours, textures and cooking times right down to the eating of the drummette and wings! This post would do my late aunty proud. When I made it for my blog post; once again, it was for convenience hence the chicken thigh pieces BUT my aunty actually baked and grilled the turmeric chicken marylands on an elevated stand and basted the chicken with the dripped oil and juices. I would have chucked in some curry powder as well but I resisted because I wanted to keep the flavour simple and let the turmeric and curry leaves shine. Great job!
All version look so yum!
I wish I was invited for tasting 3 kinds of chicken event…. Your photos made me soooooo hungry (and I always visit you this late night!). I need to go to Indian store to get curry leaves… I’ve been wanting to get it but keep forgetting. Bookmarked the recipe and hope to try it soon! Love the slow cook method and I need to check it out!
Those really do look amazing! I have only recently discovered the joys of tumeric when I made tandoori chicken for the first time. This sort of dish is right up my alley and I love both the drumsticks and wings! Thanks SO much for sharing!