Tangy Coconut Chicken & Dumplings

Tamarind coconut gravy, plus fluffy turmeric dumplings, yes please.

This week marks my mom and I’s 36th anniversary of becoming a family. Yup, that’s right, three and a half decades ago, a little, 10-week-old baby Asha flew from Calcutta to San Francisco and was handed to my mom. I smiled up at her, and then I immediately started crying. My mom said we were both terrified, but we worked it out. And, now, 36 years later, I couldn’t imagine a better mom or best friend. Raising me as a single parent, she taught me to dream big and work hard, and now I’m building those dreams one recipe at a time.

There are so many sides to the South Asian diaspora, but up until a couple years ago, there wasn’t much food media coverage of the adoptee experience. Authenticity comes in so many delicious shapes and sizes, and I’ve struggled—and, still struggle (imposter syndrome is real, y’all)—with finding my voice. This recipe ties together South Asian flavors with one of my favorite comfort foods growing up: Chicken and dumplings.

The gravy is inspired by Konkan, as well as South Indian, flavors, like byadgi chilies, curry leaves, black mustard, coriander, fenugreek, coconut, and tamarind. The classic vegetables in chicken and dumplings often include onions, celery, carrots, sometimes potatoes, and peas. This version lightens things up with big half moons of leeks, green chickpeas—but frozen peas also work great here, too—and a few big handfuls of baby spinach or kale. It’s all topped off with buttermilk drop dumplings flavored with turmeric and black pepper. But, before we get to the recipe, let’s take a moment to bask in just how dang cute my mom and I are. Love you, so much, mama!

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Tangy Coconut Chicken and Dumplings

Let’s talk byadgi chilies. This might not be a chili powder you think you have in your pantry, BUT if you have non-Diaspora Co. Kashmiri chili powder on hand, you may already be cooking with byadgi chilies unknowingly. Most food sources will say that Kashmiri chili powder is mild, but true Kashmiri chilies are beloved for their medium-hot heat and bright red color. As the Kashmiri chili gained popularity, it was easier and cheaper to grow byadgi chilies outside of Kashmir—and, even within Kashmir—and blend them with dried red bell peppers, which produced a powder with the sought-after color, but not the fire of the real chili. If the spice labeled Kashmiri chili in your larder is more akin to sweet or hot paprika, it’s most likely byadgi or a blend of milder chilies.

Byadgi chillies are beautiful in their own right—brilliantly red in hue, with a gentle, building heat, and a layered, tomato-y, bell pepper taste. In this recipe, the chilies provide a tinge of heat without making the dish spicy, while bringing lots of fruity, pepper-forward flavor. You can find byadgi chili powder online at Diaspora Co., or check out your local South Asian supermarket. Or, you can also substitute sweet or hot paprika.

Don’t miss out on more info post-recipe on make-ahead tips, tamarind concentrate vs. tamarind pulp, and some easy shortcuts on how to make this dish with leftover or rotisserie chicken.

Serves 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS

For the chicken

• 2¼ to 2½ pounds bone-in chicken legs or chicken thighs

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 1 tablespoon Diamond Crystal or 1½ teaspoons Morton’s kosher salt

• 2 teaspoons Byadgi chili powder (see headnote)

• 1¼ teaspoons ground turmeric

• 3 tablespoons coconut oil

• 1½ teaspoons coriander seeds

• ¾ teaspoon black mustard seeds

• ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds (optional)

• 12 fresh curry leaves

• 2 large or 3 medium leeks, white and light green parts, cut into ½” half moons

• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

• ½-inch piece fresh ginger, finely chopped

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• 1 14-ounce coconut cream

• 3 cups chicken stock

• 1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate

• 1½ cups fresh green chickpeas, shelled, or 1 cup frozen peas

• A couple big handfuls of baby spinach or baby kale

• ½ cup roughly chopped cilantro, plus more for finishing

For the dumplings

• 1¼ cups all-purpose flour

• 2¼ teaspoons baking powder

• ¼ teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal or ½ teaspoon Morton’s kosher salt

• ¾ teaspoon ground turmeric

• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• ⅔ cup, plus 2 tablespoons, buttermilk

• 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter

METHOD

1. Prepare 2¼ to 2½ pounds bone-in chicken legs or chicken thighs. If using chicken legs, separate the thighs from the drumsticks. Remove the skin, saving it for another use, and cut a few ½” slits across each piece of chicken. Place the chicken in a large bowl and add 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal or 1 teaspoon Morton’s kosher salt, 1½ teaspoons Byadgi chili powder, and 1 teaspoon ground turmeric. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, to overnight.

2. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 15 minutes before cooking to come to room temperature. Meanwhile, start the gravy. In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat 3 tablespoons coconut oil over medium heat. While the oil is heating, coarsely grind 1½ teaspoons coriander seeds in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. Add the coriander, ¾ teaspoon black mustard seeds, ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds, if using, and 12 fresh curry leaves to the hot oil (be careful, the curry leaves will sputter!), and cook, stirring frequently, until the spices are fragrant and the curry leaves are slightly translucent, 30 to 45 seconds.

3. Add 2 large or 3 medium sliced leeks, 3 finely chopped garlic cloves, and ½-inch piece fresh ginger, finely chopped, and sauté until the leeks soften, 4 to 6 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high, and add 2 tablespoons tomato paste, the remaining ½ teaspoon byadgi chili powder, ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric, and marinated chicken. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken starts to turn opaque and the tomato paste turns a shade or two darker, 6 to 8 minutes.

4. Add 1 14-ounce coconut cream, 3 cups chicken stock, 1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate, and the remaining 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal or ½ teaspoon Morton’s kosher salt, stir to combine, and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through and easily can be pulled off the bone, 50 to 60 minutes.

5. Using tongs remove the chicken from the sauce and transfer to a plate or quarter sheet pan. Cover the sauce and keep warm on low heat. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the chicken from the bone in big, chunky pieces.

6. While the chicken is cooling, assemble the dry ingredients for the dumplings. Mix together 1¼ cups all-purpose flour, 2¼ teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal or ½ teaspoon Morton’s kosher salt, ¾ teaspoon ground turmeric, and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper in a large bowl, and set aside.

7. Add the chicken pieces back to the sauce, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a simmer. Stir in 1½ cups fresh, shelled green chickpeas, shelled or 1 cup frozen peas and a few big handfuls of baby spinach or baby kale.

8. To finish the dumplings, add ⅔ cup, plus 2 tablespoons, buttermilk and 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter to the dry ingredients and mix to combine, being careful not to overmix (no one wants tough dumplings). Drop 1 to 2 tablespoonfuls of the dumpling mixture into the simmering sauce, cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook until the dumplings are puffed and cooked through, 15 to 17 minutes. Serve immediately.

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Make-ahead: The chicken and gravy can be cooked in advance, just stop after pulling the chicken off the bone in Step 5. Add the chicken back to the sauce, cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 days. When it’s dinnertime, reheat the chicken and gravy, adding a little water if necessary, then once it comes to a gentle boil, stir in the green chickpeas and greens, and add the dumplings.

You can also mix the dry ingredients for the dumplings ahead of time and then add the buttermilk and melted butter when you’re ready to finish the dish.

Tamarind concentrate vs. tamarind pulp: Tamarind concentrate comes in a jar and is just that, a big, bold, tangy concentrate. I use Neera’s—which I’ve found at Whole Foods—and also love the Angkor Cambodian Foods brand as well. If you don’t have concentrate, you can use one golf ball-sized piece of seedless tamarind pulp (this usually comes in a block) soaked in ½ cup of boiling water for 20 minutes, then strained through a fine mesh strainer.

Rotisserie chicken shortcut: If you don’t have time to marinate the chicken or just want to use up some leftover roast or rotisserie chicken, this recipe is a great way to liven things up! First, skip the marinating and nix the lemon juice. Keep the byadgi and turmeric measurements the same, but just add the full amount listed in Step 3. When it comes to salt, reduce the amount to 1½ teaspoons Diamond Crystal and ¾ teaspoon Morton’s kosher salt, added in Step 4, and then salt to taste as you go. For the chicken, remove the skin and pull the chicken off the bone in big, chunky pieces. (You want about 4ish cups.) Then add the chicken as the recipe states in Step 7.

Spring is in full swing! Here are some of my favorite spring-forward recipes I’ve developed over the years (jic you’ve missed them!):

• Lemony Halloumi with Snap Peas & Pea Sprouts: Blistered snap peas and planks of halloumi are nestled in a mess of pea sprouts, mint, and dill, and dressed with a simple combination of lemon juice, lemon zest, and olive oil.

• Bean Confit with Lemon, Saffron & All the Alliums: First, alliums and slices of lemon are seared, then cooked beans are added along with a generous amount of olive oil and a big pinch of fragrant saffron. I love nestling a couple salmon fillets in to make a full meal out of it.

• Herby Coconutty Chicken Skewers Platter (pictured below): The workhorse of this recipe is a punchy sauce—made with coconut cream, cilantro, mint, fish sauce, lime zest, lime juice, garlic, serrano peppers and coconut sugar to balance the heat—that does double duty as a marinade and dip. First, the ingredients are blended and a portion is used to coat cut-up chicken thighs. This is the first thing that hits my grill once the weather starts to warm up.

• Strawberry Cardamom Crumble Bars: These bars—developed for Diaspora Co.—have become a cult classic. The green cardamom plays perfectly with the sweetness of the strawberries, and the oat-pistachio crumble is *chef’s kiss*! This time of year, I love swapping out some of the strawberries for diced rhubarb.

(Photography by Scott Suchman/food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post)

For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you might have voted in a poll on which recipe to develop—this chicken and dumplings recipe or paneer-stuffed peppers—for this newsletter. The results were an almost 50-50 split (103 to 101 votes!), so the obvious answer is I should develop BOTH recipes. Paid subscribers will get that second recipe for the peppers in a separate email in the coming days!