Kukulhu Musamma

This chicken ‘musamma’ curry is quite delish. Pair it with Maldivian flatbread ‘roshi’ and a warm black tea, that’s guaranteed satisfaction. 

We think ‘musamma’ curries are really nice in general because they have that hint of sweetness against the spices and there’s that crunch and bite from the ‘kanamadhu’ (sea almonds) and raisins. If you don’t have ‘kanamadhu’, you can just use cashews. As you might be able to tell, that’s what we did on the day we shot the photo for this recipe.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1.2 kg chicken (curry cut)
• ½ cup hanaakuri havaadhu (Maldivian roasted curry powder)
• 1 tsp. salt (or to taste)
• 1 lime
• 2 medium onions
• 5 tbsp. oil
• 1/3 cup kanamadhu (sea almond)
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 20 curry leaves
• 6 inches pandan
• 3 inches cinnamon
• 3 cardamom pods
• 1 clove
• ¼ scotch bonnet pepper (or to taste)
• 1 tsp. grated ginger
• 1 tsp. grated garlic
• 2 cups coconut milk
• 3 tsp. sugar (or to taste)

Instructions:

1. Prepare the chicken by defrosting and removing the chicken skin.
2. Place the chicken in a bowl and to it add the ‘hanaakuri havaadhu’, salt and lime. Mix to get the chicken pieces evenly coated. Cover and leave to marinate while you prepare the other ingredients.
3. Slice the onion thinly.
4. Heat 3 tbsp. oil in a pot and add half of the sliced onions. Cook on low to medium heat until the onions become red and crispy. Stir the mixture now and then to get them evenly cooked. Once the onions are red remove them from the pot and set aside.
5. To the same pot add the kanamadhu and cook until they start to turn red. Then add in the raisins and cook until the raisins puff up. Remove the mixture from the pot and set aside.
6. Add 2 tbsp. oil to a large pot. Heat up the oil and add the rest of the onions along with the curry leaves, pandan, cinnamon, cardamom (with their ends snipped off), clove and the scotch bonnet (githeyo mirus). Stir and cook until the onions become soft and get a brownish hint.
7. Add the ginger and garlic and cook while stirring for around half a minute.
8. Then add the marinated chicken along with the coconut milk. Stir to combine and then bring the mixture to a boil.
9. Once it boils, turn down the heat and let it simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.
10. Add in the fried onions, ‘kanamadhu’ and raisins and give it a good mix. Put the lid back on and cook for an additional 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
11. Have a taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. We added 3 tsp. sugar and ¼ tsp. of salt. Cook for an additional 2 minutes and that’s it.