Pepper Chicken Recipe with Step by Step Photos – In this post I share how to make Restaurant Style Pepper Chicken (dry). An easy, no-fail chicken recipe that is perfect to make for family gatherings and/or potluck parties.
And when I say no-fail, I really mean it. This is an easy enough recipe even for a beginner. And delicious enough to impress your family, friends and guests at family gatherings and potluck parties.
You can pair this with Chicken Fried Rice – it makes a delicious combination for parties or weekend indulgences!
More Chicken Recipes:
Whole Chicken Tandoori
Crispy Chicken 65
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Pepper Chicken Recipe – Restaurant Style
Prep Time: 20- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 45
Yield: 6-8
Category: Appetizers
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Indian
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Pepper Chicken Recipe – An easy, no-fail chicken recipe made by marinating boneless chicken chunks in pepper & fennel spice powder, and then roasting it with south indian style tempering, onions, ginger and garlic.
Ingredients
- Boneless chicken thighs – 4 pounds
- Black peppercorns – 2 tablespoons
- Fennel seeds – 1 tablespoon
- Black mustard seeds – 2 teaspoons
- Curry leaves – 20 leaves
- Red chilies – 4
- Onions (chopped) – 2 cups
- Ginger Garlic Paste – 4 tablespoons
- Oil – 4 tablespoons
- Salt (total) – 4 teaspoons
Instructions
Chicken prep and marination for Pepper Chicken
- Clean and cut boneless chicken thigh meat into bite sized chunks / cubes.
- In a dry mixer – crush 2 tbsp black peppercorns & 1 tbsp fennel seeds into a fine powder. This will make about 3.5 tbsp of pepper & fennel powder. Add 1 tbsp salt to this & mix well.
- Marinate boneless chicken thigh chunks with the spice powder for 1-2 hours.
Making Pepper Chicken
- In a pot, heat up 4 tbsp oil, and add 2 tsp black mustard seeds & roast till the mustard seeds begin to crackle.
- Then add 20 curry leaves (washed & dried) and 4 red chilies (each slit in two parts), and roast for 1-2 minutes.
- Now add 2 cups of chopped onion & 1 tsp salt, and saute till the onions turn soft & translucent to light brown.
- Add 2 tbsp ginger garlic paste & saute for 2 – 3 mins so that it loses its raw flavor.
- Then add in the marinated chicken thigh chunks & mix well.
- Cook covered for 10-15 minutes on medium high heat, stirring intermittently.
- Then cook with the lid off for 10-15 minutes till chicken is cooked well.
- Pepper chicken (dry) is ready to serve!
Notes
- You can use chicken breasts, but I always go with thigh meat, as it doesn’t dry out easily, and makes for really juicy pepper chicken. Plus it is even cheaper than the chicken breasts. So win – win!
- If you do have the time, marinate this chicken for longer than 1-2 hours. Preferably overnight. It gets even more delicious!
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How to Make Pepper Chicken Recipe with Step by Step Photos
In the section below, I am sharing the step by step photos of making this boneless pepper chicken (dry) recipe mostly to share how the ingredients / this recipe looks like at different stages, especially for those who prefer step by step visuals.
But when you are trying to make this pepper chicken recipe, please refer to the recipe in the recipe card shared above, as that is the best place to get all the ingredients, measurements, instructions, along with any recipe notes – at one place.🙂
1. Clean & cut the chicken thigh meat into bite sized chunks. Crush coarse black pepper and fennel seeds into a fine powder, add salt to the spice mix, and mix well. Then marinate the chicken thigh chunks in this spice powder for 1-2 hours.
2. In a pot, heat up the oil, add black mustard seeds, and wait till it crackles. Then add in curry leaves & red chilies, and roast for 1-2 minutes.
3. Now add chopped onions & salt, and saute till the onions turn light golden brown.
4. Once the onions are done, add in ginger garlic paste & saute for 1-2 minutes till the ginger and garlic loses it raw flavor.
5. Then add in the marinated chicken chunks and mix well.
6. Cook covered for 10-15 minutes & then for 10-15 minutes with the lid off, stirring intermittently, till all of the chicken is cooked well.
7. Indian-Style Pepper Chicken is ready to serve!
Recipe Notes:
You can use chicken breast meat instead of chicken thighs. But I recommend using chicken thigh meat to make tender & juicy pepper chicken.
I’ve done my very best to share the exact measurements, and outline every step, but if something is not clear to you, or you have questions about quantities or alternatives, or anything at all, feel free to ask in the comments. I promise to reply to every single query.
If you like the recipe, please do take the time to rate the recipe below. I would truly appreciate it. 🙂
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One of my fav chicken appetizer! Love it spicy with chill beer LOL
★★★★★
Haha same here. Though it’s margaritas for me! 😀