A traditional recipe that hasn’t yet lost its identity, one of my family favorites…
A dish very close to my taste buds as I grew up having this on every special occasion and during all family gatherings. This is often made by my grandma, my mom, and my aunts, surprisingly all of them make this particular dish so perfectly. This recipe has been passed down for generations in my family. My mom used to make this often so I never actually missed this or never had the craving for having this. But now living miles apart from my mom, I have a frequent craving for eating this. I couldn’t rush to any restaurant to have this as it’s not served in any restaurants here and not even in India. There was no other way but to make it by myself in my kitchen. To satisfy my taste buds, I tried making this four years ago for the first time and it turned out to be a big hit. Since then I make this whenever I get a craving.
The origin of this dish is definitely from South India, it’s popular in some parts of Tamil Nadu and in Kerala (Malabar and Cochin). It is known as Chakkoli in Tamil Nadu and Trivandrum and as Thakkidi in Malabar.
You need to spare some time to make this as it involves a few steps, like making the rice dumpling, cooking the chicken, and finally combining the dumplings and chicken in a coconut sauce. The making of dumplings might be a little tiresome, but the best part is if you have kids they are going to volunteer to make this as they find it really fun playing with the rice dough, believe me, I used to do this when I was a kid.
Today, on Eid day I couldn’t think of any better dish than this so made this. I felt as if all my family members were sitting with me around the dining table enjoying this dish. This dish made my Eid special and homely.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Eid celebration with family and friends.
Here is the picture of Chakkoli made with shrimp
Chakkoli with chicken
Ingredients
For making the dough
- Roasted rice flour- 2 cups + 2 tbsp (rice flour for making idiyappam)
- Water- 2 cups
- Salt- 1/2 tsp
Cooking the dumpling
- Small rice balls
- Water- 3 cups
- Vegetable Oil- 2 tbsp
For cooking chicken
- Chicken, bone-in, cut small- 12 pieces (or use shrimp- 20)
- Garam masala- 1 tsp
- Chili powder- 1 1/2 tsp
- Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
- Fennel powder- 1 tsp
- Coriander powder- 2 tsp
- Curry leaves- 1 sprig
- Salt- 1/2 tsp
To grind coconut
- Coconut, grated- 1 cup
- Fennel powder- 2 tsp
- Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
- Cinnamon stick- 2-inch slice
- Water- 1/2 cup
For seasoning (must add)
- Small onions, minced- 1/4 cup
- Curry leaves- 10 leaves
- Ghee- 2 tbsp
Instruction:
Step1: Making the dough & dumplings
- Boil water in a wide cooking pot, add salt.
- As soon as the water boils, add the rice flour and combine it with a wooden spoon, take the pan off the heat.
- Let it cool down a bit, don’t let the dough cool down completely it will turn hard.
- Using your clean hand, knead the dough well while it’s slightly warm.
- If the dough is hard, sprinkle a little water and knead the dough.
- Make small rod shapes out of the dough.
- Grease your hands with a little oil.
- Take an inch of the dough and make it into a round shape by rolling in between your palms.
- Make a depression in the middle of the dough with your finger.
Repeat this until you have the entire dough made into small rounds or dumplings, keep them aside.
Step 2: Cooking the chicken
- To the chicken, add chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, fennel powder, coriander powder, and curry leaves, combine well.
- Cook the chicken in a pressure cooker or in a saucepan over stovetop.
- Place a pressure cooker over medium heat, add the marinated chicken to the cooker.
- Close the cooker with its lid and place the whistle, cook for 2 whistles or until the chicken has cooked well.
Step 3: Grind the Coconut
- Grind the coconut along with fennel powder, turmeric powder, cinnamon stick, and water into a smooth paste. Keep it aside.
Step 4: Cooking the dumpling
- Place a wide pot over medium heat, add 3 cups of water and oil.
- When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the rice dumplings.
- Let cook for 15 minutes, don’t stir the dumplings constantly they will break apart.
- When the dumplings float on the water, using a slotted spoon take them out of the water.
Step 5: Combine the dumplings with chicken and coconut sauce.
- Add the cooked chicken, add the cooked dumplings, gently combine well using a spatula.
- Now, add the ground coconut, combine well. Rinse the blender jar with 1/2 cup water & add that & cook covered for a few minutes.
- Cook till the gravy thickens.
- If the gravy is watery turn the heat to high and let the sauce thicken. Take the pan off the heat & keep it covered.
Step 6: Final seasoning
- Heat a frying pan, add ghee & minced small onions, fry till small onions turn golden in color.
- Add curry leaves & fry for a few seconds.
- Immediately, pour the seasoning over the prepared chakkoli.
- Keep it covered for some time so that the flavor from the seasoning will infuse into the chakkoli.
- Let cool down and serve the chakkoli on a plate.
- This is a complete meal and you don’t need anything to go with this.
PS: This dish tastes better the next day, refrigerate any leftovers and warm it up before serving, tastes absolutely delish.
Tips:
- Chakkoli tastes even better when made with shrimp or prawns.
- You could also make this with shrimp, goat meat, or beef. My favorite is with shrimp.
- Don’t avoid the final seasoning with fried onions and curry leaves, this will greatly enhance the taste of the chakkoli
- Roasted rice flour- 2 cups + 2 tbsp (rice flour for making idiyappam)
- Water- 2 cups
- Salt- ½ tsp
- Prepared rice balls
- Water- 3 cups
- Vegetable Oil- 2 tbsp
- Chicken, bone-in, cut small- 12 pieces
- Garam masala- 1 tsp
- Chili powder- 1½ tsp
- Turmeric powder- ¼ tsp
- Fennel powder- 1 tsp
- Coriander powder- 2 tsp
- Curry leaves- 1 sprig
- Salt- ½ tsp
- Coconut, grated- 1 cup
- Fennel powder- 2 tsp
- Turmeric powder- ¼ tsp
- Cinnamon stick- 2-inch slice
- Water- ½ cup
- Small onions, minced- ¼ cup
- Curry leaves- 10 leaves
- Ghee- 2 tbsp
- Boil water in a wide saucepan, add salt.
- Let the water come to a slight boil, add the rice flour and combine it with a wooden spoon, take the pan off the heat.
- Let it cool down a bit, don't let the dough cool down completely it will turn hard.
- Using your clean hand, knead the dough well while it's slightly warm.
- If the dough is hard, sprinkle a little water and knead the dough.
- Make small rod shapes out of the dough.
- Grease your clean hands with a little oil.
- Take an inch of the dough and make it into a round shape by rolling in between your palms.
- Make a depression in the middle of the dough with your finger.
- Repeat this until you have the entire dough made into small rounds or dumplings, keep them aside.
- I've taken bone-in chicken pieces, 12 pieces, you can also use boneless chicken breast or thighs diced.
- To the chicken, add chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, fennel powder, coriander powder, and curry leaves, combine well.
- Cook the chicken in a pressure cooker or in a saucepan over stovetop.
- Place a pressure cooker over medium heat, add the marinated chicken to the cooker.
- Close the cooker with its lid and place the whistle, cook for 2 whistles or until the chicken has cooked well.
- Grind the coconut along with fennel powder, turmeric powder, cinnamon stick, and water into a smooth paste. Keep it aside.
- Place a wide pot over medium heat, add 3 cups of water and oil.
- When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the rice dumplings.
- Let cook for 15 minutes, don't stir the dumplings constantly they will break apart.
- When the dumplings float on the water, using a slotted spoon take them out of the water.
- Add the cooked chicken, add the cooked dumplings, gently combine well using a spatula.
- Now, add the ground coconut, combine well.
- Rinse the blender jar with ½ cup water & add that & cook covered for a few minutes.
- Cook till the gravy thickens.
- If the gravy is watery turn the heat to high and let the sauce thicken. Take the pan off the heat & keep it covered.
- Don't skip this step.
- Heat a frying pan, add ghee & minced small onions, fry till small onions turn golden in color.
- Add curry leaves & fry for a few seconds.
- Immediately, pour the seasoning over the prepared chakkoli.
- Keep it covered for some time so that the flavor from the seasoning will infuse into the chakkoli.
- Let cool down and serve the chakkoli on a plate.
- This is a complete meal and you don't need anything to go with this.
- This is absolutely delicious.
- PS: This dish tastes better the next day, refrigerate any leftovers and warm it up before serving, tastes absolutely delish.
You could also make this with shrimp goat meat or beef. My favorite is with shrimp.
Don't avoid the final seasoning with fried onions and curry leaves, this enhances the taste of the chakkoli greatly.
