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Chicken Cafreal aka Galinha Cafrealis a Portuguese influenced dish popular in theGoan cuisine! Learn how to make this Goan delight with step by step pictures.
No festive occasion is complete without chicken cafreal on the menu along with the popular sorpotel, vindaloo’s/vindalho’s, xacuti and the likes.
But who really needs an occasion to indulge in some chicken cafreal? I prepare it quite frequently, mostly for our Sunday meals, coz weekend meals are meant to be special, at least that is what I remember since my childhood. Pulao, biryani’s and rich curries were mostly reserved for Sunday’s!
Table of Contents
Let’s talk about cafreal masala
In this dish, chicken is marinated with an uber-flavorful greenspice paste known as cafreal masala. And here’s what goes into this spice paste;
- Coriander (cilantro) leaves
- Green chillies
- Ginger and garlic
- Ground turmeric
- Whole spices like peppercorn, cinnamon, cloves, and cumin seeds
- Poppy seeds
- A sour ingredient which may vary from tamarind to lime juice to vinegar!
Chicken cafreal is fiery, rustic, a bit tangy, utterly aromatic and absolutely delicious all at once!
Adjectives fall short to describe how fantastic this dish is!
Some folks add a splash of rum when the chicken is almost done which actually adds a nice, festive finish to the dish!
Served alongside some potato wedges/fries and salad, and you have a complete, wholesome meal!
Some easy tips to keep in mind before making this recipe
Chicken leg pieces are your best bet to make chicken cafreal, the meat is succulent, tender and just falls apart. So delicious! You may use breast pieces too. I’ve made a semi gravy version, allowing the marinade to almost dry up, coating the chicken with all that aromatic and flavorful deliciousness.
You can have it in the form of curry too, adjust the liquid as required and enjoy it with some pulao or bread instead.
Marinating the chicken in the cafreal paste overnight gives maximum flavor to the dish, so I highly recommend you do a little prep work in advance to thoroughly enjoy chicken cafreal! If you have any leftovers (highly unlikely :D) use them in sandwiches, wraps etc.
You may also enjoy these Goan dishes
Recheado masala stuffed squids
Recheado masala chicken drumsticks
Mussels rava fry
How to make authentic Goan chicken cafreal recipe – Step by step instructions
Step 1: Marinate the chicken
Pat dry the chicken (1.5 pounds), make some gashes on the chicken thighs. Rub it well with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1/2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste & 1 teaspoon salt. Set aside for 30 minutes. In the meanwhile prepare the cafreal masala.
Step 2: Cafreal masala
In a blender/grinder, add 1 cup coriander leaves with tender stems, 6-7 green chilies, 6-7 garlic cloves, 1.5 inch ginger root, 4 cloves, 8 peppercorns, 1-inch cinnamon, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 2 teaspoons poppy seeds, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, and a small ball of tamarind. Grind to a smooth paste using water as required. I used a little more than 1/4 cup water.
Step 3: Marinate the chicken
Apply half of the prepared marinade to the chicken and let it marinate 2-3 hours or overnight preferably. Reserve the remaining marinade in the refrigerator.
Step 4: Cook
Before you cook the chicken, remove it out from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature.
Heat butter and oil in a pan. Once it is hot, add the chicken pieces, cook until golden brown on both sides.
Then add the reserved marinade along with 1/2 cup water, cook covered on medium heat for about 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken pieces.
When the chicken is almost done, cook uncovered, till the gravy dries up a bit and the masala coats the chicken well.
Step 5: Serve
Once done, sprinkle lemon juice and serve hot along with some potato wedges, lime wedges, and salad.
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Chicken Cafreal Recipe | Goan Galinha Cafreal
Freda Dias
Chicken Cafreal aka Galinha Cafrealis a Portuguese influenced dish popular in theGoan cuisine! Learn how to make this Goan delight with step by step pictures.
5 from 9 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 25 minutes mins
Resting Time 3 hours hrs
Total Time 35 minutes mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Goan, Indian
Servings 2 people
Ingredients
Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml
- 1.5 lbs chicken thighs
- 1/2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 1 tbsp lemon juice/vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
For the cafreal masala
- 1 cup loosely packed cilantro/coriander leaves with tender stalks, about 30 stalks
- 6-7 green chillies, adjust as per desired heat
- 6-7 large garlic cloves
- 1 & 1/2 inch piece of ginger
- 4 cloves
- 8 peppercorns
- 1 inch of cinnamon
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 tsp poppy seeds
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- A smallball of tamarind/Juice of half a lime
Other ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
Pat dry the chicken, make some gashes on the chicken thighs. Rub it well with lemon juice. ginger garlic paste & salt. Set aside for 30 minutes. In the meanwhile prepare the cafreal masala.
In a blender/grinder, add all the ingredients listed under cafreal masala and make a smooth paste using water as required. I used a little more than 1/4 cup water.
Apply half of the prepared marinade to the chicken and let it marinate 2-3 hours or overnight preferably. Reserve the remaining marinade in the refrigerator.
Before you cook the chicken, remove it out from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature. Heat butter and oil in a pan. Once it is hot, add the chicken pieces, cook until golden brown on both sides.
Then add the reserved marinade along with 1/2 cup water, cook covered on medium heat for about 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken pieces.When the chicken is almost done, cook uncovered, till the gravy dries up a bit and the masala coats the chicken well.
Once done, sprinkle lemon juice and serve hot along with some potato wedges, lime wedges, and salad.
Keyword Chicken Cafreal
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