Chicken Cafreal Recipe is a very famous and common Goan dish. This Galina cafreal was introduced in Goa by Portuguese, and now in demand at goan restaurants. It’s prepared with authentic goan chicken cafreal masala of simple ingredients. Check how to make chicken cafreal goan style at home.
This goan chicken cafreal is my favorite dish from childhood. I still remember the recipe for my first goan style cafreal, which I prepared during my college days.
Chicken cafreal is also my family’s tasty dish. On every visit to Goa, our family prefers having this best chicken cafreal as starters at Florentine Restaurant. But on occasion, I always prepare this recipe of chicken cafreal at home.
The chicken is marinated with green-colored cafreal masala for at least one hour or overnight. For better taste, it is good to marinate it for a longer time or overnight.
This dish also goes well with goan pork vindaloo, pork sorpotel or chicken xacuti.
Also check our soup recipes like hot goan macaroni soup, tomato soup, fresh tomato gazpacho soup, chinese chicken sweetcorn soup, hot and sour vegetable soup, chicken and sweetcorn soup,
What is Chicken Cafreal
Chicken Cafreal originated from the Portuguese colony called Mozambique in Africa. This dish was adapted from a well-known dish called Galinha (Frango) Piri-Piri. Then the Portuguese made some changes to it before reaching Goa. And now it’s the famous Goan Chicken Cafreal.
Tips For Making Chicken Cafreal
- I used chicken legs in this recipe, it is my favorite. But you can also use chicken breasts, chicken thighs, or whole chicken (cut into pieces).
- It’s better to apply cafreal masala on the chicken and marinate it overnight for a tastier cafreal.
- This recipe is a dry version, but you can also make a chicken cafreal semi-dry or gravy version.
- Make small slits or cuts on the chicken to absorb the cafreal masala
- Use the leftover marination masala while cooking
How To Store The Cafreal
Goan Chicken cafreal can be stored in an air tight container for 3 – 4 days in the refrigerator
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- Goan Chana Doce Recipe
- Goan Nevris / Nevri / Karanji
- Goan Baath (Coconut Cake)
- Goan Guava Cheese
- Goan Coconut Toffee
- Alle Belle Recipe
Cafreal Masala Ingredients
Goan Style Chicken cafreal masala contains very simple ingredients available in the market.
- fresh green coriander/cilantro leaves with tender stalks
- large garlic cloves
- ginger piece (roughly chopped)
- green chilies (adjust to taste)
- cloves
- cinnamon sticks
- cumin seeds
- black peppercorns
- coriander seeds
- fennel seeds
- granulated sugar
- goan vinegar / palm vinegar
- salt (adjust to taste)
How To Make Goan Cafreal Masala
- For Cafreal Masala Goan Style, take all Chicken Cafreal Masala Ingredients (coriander leaves, garlic cloves, ginger, green chilies, cloves, cinnamon sticks, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, granulated sugar, goan vinegar, salt), and grind together into a smooth paste of goan cafreal masala.
Chicken Cafreal Ingredients
For Goan Chicken Cafreal Ingredients
- chicken legs OR any chicken pieces
- turmeric powder
- lime juice
- salt (according to taste)
- oil
How To Make Chicken Cafreal Step By Step
- For chicken cafreal goan style, take the chicken legs and dry pat them. Make deep slits on them. Take turmeric powder, lime juice, and salt and apply them. Keep it aside for 15 minutes. In the meantime make the chicken cafreal masala as mentioned above.
- Take the goan cafreal masala, and rub it over the chicken legs and inside the slits. Marinate them for at least 1 hour or for overnight in the fridge.
- After marination, take a heavy bottom pan and heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add the chicken pieces and fry them on high heat for at least 1 minute. On low heat, cover the lid and cook them for at least 10 minutes on each side.
- Then open the lid, and cook till the chicken turn brown and cooks through. Then open the lid, and cook till the chicken turns brown and cafreal masala thickens and well coats the chicken. Remove the chicken from the pan and transfer it to a bowl.
- Serve Chicken Cafreal Goan Style with caramelized onions, fried potatoes, or goan wheat bread (poey).
Delicious Chicken Cafreal Recipe in Goan Style cooked at occasions like Christmas, Easter, New Year and Parties. Also prepared at weekends and very famous restaurant goan dish. It’s prepared with mouthwatering chicken cafreal masala ingredients at home.
How To Serve Goan Chicken Cafreal
Chicken Cafreal Goan Style is mostly served with potato wedges, onion slices and lemon as starters. It can also be served with refreshing salads. It also goes well with pulav, goan pork sopotel, pork vindaloo goan style and chicken xacuti.
Check Other Chicken Recipes
- Chicken Biryani
- Chicken Dhansak Parsi Recipe
- Chicken With Cashew Parsi Style
- Chicken Kolhapuri
- Restaurant Style Chicken 65
- Goan Roast Chicken In Oven
- Chicken Curry Without Coconut Milk
Try Our Other Delicious Recipes
- Parsi Fish In White Sauce (Saas Ni Machhi)
- Goan MeatBall Curry Recipe
- Stuffed Mackerel Goan Style (Bangda Recheado)
- Mutton Keema Matar, Minced Lamb With Peas
- Goan Pomfret Fish Curry WIth Coconut Milk
- Fish Pulav Recipe
Goan Chicken Cafreal Recipe, Goan Cafreal Masala
- Total Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
- Yield: 4 people 1x
Description
Ingredients
For Goan Chicken Cafreal
- 1 kilogram (2. 2 lbs) chicken legs OR any chicken pieces
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 lime juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt (according to taste)
- 2 tablespoons oil
For Cafreal Masala
- 1 bundle fresh green coriander/cilantro leaves with tender stalks
- 8 large garlic cloves
- 1 ½ inch ginger piece (roughly chopped)
- 4–5 green chilies (adjust to taste)
- 6 cloves
- 1 ½ inch cinnamon sticks
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons goan vinegar / palm vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
Instructions
- To make goan chicken cafreal, first, pat dry the chicken legs. Take the chicken pieces and make deep slits on them. Apply the turmeric powder, lime juice, and salt. Keep it aside for 15 minutes.
- Grind together all the ingredients in chicken cafreal masala, to a fine smooth paste.
- Rub the goan cafreal masala all over the chicken leg pieces on all sides. Marinate it for at least 1 hour or for overnight in the fridge.
- After marination, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy bottom pan. Fry the chicken on high heat for at least 1 minute. Then on low heat cover the lid and cook for 10 minutes on each side.
- Then open the lid, and cook till the chicken turns brown and cooks through. The cafreal masala should get thickened and well coated with the chicken. Remove the chicken from the pan and transfer it to a bowl.
- Serve Chicken Cafreal Goan Style with caramelized onions, fried potatoes, or goan wheat bread (poey).
Notes
- The longer the chicken is kept under marination, the chicken cafreal will become tastier.
- when the marinated chicken is removed from fridge, let it come to room temperature before cooking
- better to make slits on chicken, to absorb the cafreal masala and make it tastier
- this recipe is chicken cafreal dry, but you can prepare gravy or semi dry cafreal.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Marination TIme: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Chicken Recipes, Goan Recipes
