Gondhoraj Murgi Recipe | Bengali Lebu Lonka Chicken Curry
Gondhoraj Murgi, also known as Bengali Lebu Lonka Murgi, is a fragrant chicken curry. It gets its unique flavor from gondhoraj lime juice, lime leaves, and lime zest, along with green chilies in a delicate coconut milk gravy. The best part is that this signature Bengali chicken dish, a favorite in Bengali specialty restaurants, takes only 30 minutes to cook.
Servings 6 people
Calories 378kcal
Cost Rs 350
Equipment
- 1 pot with lid
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Spoon
- 1 grater
Ingredients
- 1 kg Chicken curry cut with bone
- 2 Gondhoraj Lebu / lime
- 10 Lebu pata or lime leaves
- 10 Green Chilies
- 1 tablespoon Ginger paste
- 1 tablespoon Garlic paste
- 200 ml Coconut milk
- 1 Mace
- 2 Green Cardamom
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- 1.5 tablespoon Salt
- 3 tablespoon Vegetable oil unflavored
Instructions
- To begin, you'll need bone-in chicken for this recipe, preferably curry-cut chicken without the skin. Wash and pat the chicken pieces dry before cooking.
Marination
- First, marinate the chicken. Place the chicken in a bowl.
- Next, using a grater or peeler, carefully remove only the green outer peel of a Gondhoraj Lebu (lime), making sure to avoid the bitter white part underneath. Add this lemon zest to the chicken. For one kilogram of chicken, you'll need the zest from at least one large lime.
- Also, add the juice from one Gondhoraj Lebu.
- Add 1 tablespoon ginger paste and 1 tablespoon garlic paste to it.
- Finally, add one teaspoon of salt and mix all the ingredients thoroughly with the chicken. Let the chicken marinate for 30 minutes.
Cooking Gondhoraj murgi or bengali lebu lonka chicken curry
- Heat 3 tablespoon unflavored vegetable oil in a deep pan.
- Temper the hot oil with one piece of mace, two to three green cardamoms, and one cinnamon stick. Be careful not to use too many whole spices, as this recipe focuses on the distinct flavors of the lime.
- Cook for a minute.
- Add the marinated chicken to the pan, including any liquid from the marinade.
- Then, slit six to seven green chilies down the middle and add them to the chicken.
- For the curry, wash about 5-6 lime leaves, tear them into pieces, and add them to the chicken.
- Stir everything together and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.
- Next, pour in 200ml of coconut milk and check if you need to add more salt.
- Cover the pot and let it cook on low heat for 15 minutes.
- At this point, the chicken should be almost done.
- I added an extra tablespoon of lime juice to enhance the flavor.
- For even more flavor, I also included some green chilies and additional lime leaves.
- Stir again and cook for another 5 minutes before turning off the heat.
- You'll notice the chicken is perfectly cooked with a light gravy. I recommend not making the curry too thick. If you prefer a thinner consistency, you can add ½ cup of hot water when you add the coconut milk.
- Once finished, cover the pot and let the Gondhoraj chicken curry, also known as lebu lonka murgi, sit for 15 minutes before serving so the flavors can blend.
- This dish is best enjoyed with hot steamed rice.
Notes
Top Tips!
- For this recipe, you'll need bone-in chicken, ideally curry-cut and skinless. Make sure to wash and pat the chicken dry before cooking.
- This dish, called Gondhoraj Murgi or Lebu Lonka Murgi, absolutely requires Gondhoraj lime and lime leaves. If these are hard to find, kaffir lime and kaffir lime leaves are a great substitute.
- When zesting the lime, be careful to only grate the green outer skin, avoiding the bitter white part underneath.
- For the lime leaves, simply tear them and add them into pieces.
- I used store-bought coconut milk, but feel free to extract fresh milk from a medium-sized coconut if you prefer.
- I used medium-hot green chilies, so adjust the quantity based on your preferred spice level and the type of chili you have.
- Also, I chose an unflavored vegetable oil for cooking because I wanted to avoid the strong taste and color that mustard oil would give, as Lebu Lonka Murgi is typically a pale, whitish dish.
- Lastly, I didn't include sugar in this recipe because it wasn't necessary.
Nutrition
Serving: 230g | Calories: 378kcal | Carbohydrates: 105g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 2086mg | Potassium: 2663mg | Fiber: 58g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1647IU | Vitamin C: 29mg | Calcium: 817mg | Iron: 51mg
