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Sri Lankan devilled chicken- spicy chicken stir fry.

Classic Devilled chicken is a popular Sri Lankan-style chilli chicken stir-fry. crispy, tender chicken pieces tossed in a delicious, spicy, thick sauce.
This restaurant-style devil chicken can be served as an appetiser or as a main dish.

devilled chicken served on a blacl platter.

Once you learn to make the devilled chicken dish, I guarantee you’ll be making it as often as possible.
This is one of the most requested and cooked spicy chicken stir-fry recipes out of my kitchen.
For your convenience, I’ve also mentioned a few serving ideas below that you can try

devilled chicken with wedges of onion and banana peppers.
  • Shallow frying vs. Deep frying.
    • Try to choose what’s best for you.
      • Deep frying gives you a much crisper chicken.
        • You can fry the pieces evenly on all sides, but this method of frying is not the healthiest option for those who are thinking about wellness.
      • Shallow frying is a better option as you are using less oil.
        • You’ll still get a crispy chicken, but you’ll have to constantly keep turning the chicken to get an even fry, Still, I prefer shallow frying.
      • To make air fryer devilled chicken.
  • Here’s where you can make little adjustments to suit your tastes.
    • For adults, I increase the heat by adding red chilli sauce(do not use sriracha sauce here).
    • For kids, I have done the devil chicken with extra spoons of sweet chilli sauce. 
  • I have also added 1/4 cup thick coconut milk to make the devil chicken extra thick and to have a little gravy for my rice and curry menu.
  • Taste and make necessary adjustments as given above, check for salt seasoning of salt, and chill.
  • Don’t go rinsing the pan you made this chilli chicken in, there’s a lot of goodness coating the pan that you can still use.
    • Drop a cup of cooked rice and mix it with the leftover sauce, and have a few slices of bread.
    • Then wipe the sauce off the pan or simply let the kids use their fingers to lick all that thick sauce.
crispy chicken in a spicy devilled sauce.
  • Chopping board and knife.
  • Bowls to hold ingredients.
  • Wooden spoon and tongs.
  • Kitchen paper towels are used to absorb excess oil from the fried chicken.
  • A large frying pan, wok or skillet to fry the chicken and later assemble all the ingredients to make the devil chicken stir fry.
  • A platter to serve the spicy chicken fry.
  • Storing.
    • Once the stir-fry is done, leave it out to cool and store in a preferably airtight glass container.
    • The stir-fry ingredients might stain new plastic containers. refrigerate and use within 3 days.
  • Freezing.
    • Can be frozen for up to a week, but I would highly recommend not freezing, but use within a few days.
  • Reheating.
    • Should you freeze and need to reheat, leave it stir-fry until it reaches room temperature, and warm the stir-fry over low-medium heat.
  • Stop food waste by,
    • Knowing your family member’s eating habits, if you feel that the number of banana peppers and onions will go to waste, simply reduce them by half.
    • Any leftovers can be used in wraps, sandwiches, stir-fry rice, or noodles.
devilled chicken with wedges of banana peppers and onions.
  • Marinating ingredients.
    • Boneless chicken from chicken thighs or chicken breast, cut into medium-sized pieces.
    • Turmeric powder– adds mild earthy flavour, authentic taste and colour.
    • Red chilli powder – adds heat to the devil chicken.
    • Salt to season
  • To make the chicken stir-fry.
    • Oil– use any type of cooking oil, preferably coconut oil, vegetable oil, or sunflower oil.
    • Minced ginger and minced garlic- they add aroma and enhance the flavours
    • Onions cut into wedges– adds crunch, aroma and flavour.
    • Medium-sized tomatoes cut into wedges– adds sweetness and elevates the taste of the devil chicken flavour with all the other elements
    • Capsicums or Banana peppers– cut into thick slices. Substitute with bell peppers.
    • Oyster sauce
    • Soy sauce
    • Tomato sauce
    • Red chilli flakes(increase if you need more heat).
    • Sugar-optional, if you need it to be slightly sweet for the kids)

Prepare the ingredients as needed.

ingredients in separate bowls to make Sri Lankan devilled chicken.

Cut the chicken into the required size and place them in a bowl.
Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, and season with salt.
Combine well.
Use disposable gloves if you are sensitive to the spices.
Cover and let the chicken parts marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.

marinating the chicken to make devilled chicken.

Place a shallow skillet or pan over medium heat.
Pour in the oil, let it heat for a few seconds.
Add the chicken pieces in a single layer.
Shallow fry the chicken pieces on both sides until they turn golden brown and crispy.
You can use my air fryer chicken tender recipe to make a healthier, less-oil version.
This should take 10 minutes over low-medium heat.
Take care not to burn yourself while frying the chicken pieces.
As you fry the chicken pieces, maintain a constant medium heat while tossing them regularly for an even fry.
This should take 10-15 minutes.
Once done, transfer the fried chicken to a paper towel.

frying the chicken in oil to make devilled chicken.

Place the same pan with the remaining oil over medium heat.
Add the minced garlic and ginger to the oil and sauté for two minutes. 

minced garlic and ginger fried to make devilled chicken.

Add the onion wedges, capsicums, and tomatoes to the pan.
Sauté until the capsicums turn slightly soft(should still have a crunch) over medium heat.
5-10 minutes.

wedges of banana pepper, tomatoes and onions cooked to make the deviled chicken.

Reduce heat to low and pour in the soy sauce, oyster sauce, tomato sauce and red chilli flakes.
Combine and cook for a few minutes.

adding sauces to make the devilled chicken.

Add the sugar once the onion and capsicum turn soft with the sauce mixture.
Reduce or increase the amount of sugar as needed.

adding sugar to the stir frying ingredients for the devilled chicken.

Once you have the sauce mixture prepared, transfer the crispy chicken pieces to the pan.
Over low heat, combine well and continue to cook for 2 minutes.
Taste and adjust the flavour as per your need.

adding crispy chicken to the devilled stir fried ingredients.

Cook until the sauce is thick and completely coats the chicken, with a little gravy left in the bottom of the pan.

devilled chicken with banana pepper, wedges of onions and tomatoes.

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crispy devilled chicken served on a black platter.

Sri Lankan devilled chilli chicken stir-fry.

Yield: 4
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Additional Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

Classic Devilled chicken is a popular Sri Lankan-style chilli chicken stir-fry.
Crispy, tender chicken pieces tossed in a delicious, spicy, thick sauce.
This restaurant-style devil chicken can be served as an appetiser or as a main dish.
Once you learn to make the devilled chicken dish, I guarantee you’ll be making it as often as possible.
This is one of the most requested and cooked spicy chicken stir-fry recipes out of my kitchen.

Ingredients

Instructions

    1. Prepare the ingredients as needed.
    2. Cut the chicken into the required size and place them in a bowl.
    3. Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, and season with salt.
    4. Combine well. Use disposable gloves if you are sensitive to the spices.
    5. Cover and let the chicken parts marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.

Frying the chicken.

  1. Place a shallow skillet or pan over medium heat.
  2. Pour in the oil, let it heat for a few seconds.
  3. Add the chicken pieces in a single layer.
  4. Shallow fry the chicken pieces on both sides until they turn golden brown and crispy.
  5. You can use my air fryer chicken tender recipe to make a healthier, less-oil version.
  6. This should take 10 minutes over low-medium heat.
  7. Take care not to burn yourself while frying the chicken pieces.
  8. As you fry the chicken pieces, maintain a constant medium heat while tossing them regularly for an even fry.
  9. This should take 10-15 minutes. Once done, transfer the fried chicken to a paper towel.
  10. Place the same pan with the remaining oil over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and ginger to the oil and sauté for two minutes. 
  11. Add the onion wedges, capsicums, and tomatoes to the pan. Sauté until the capsicums turn slightly soft(should still have a crunch) over medium heat.5-10 minutes.
  12. Reduce heat to low and pour in the soy sauce, oyster sauce, tomato sauce and red chilli flakes. Combine and cook for a few minutes.
  13. Once the onion and capsicum turn soft with the sauce mixture, add the sugar. Reduce or increase the amount of sugar as per your need.
  14. Once you have the sauce mixture prepared, transfer the crispy chicken pieces to the pan.
  15. Over low heat, combine well and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Taste and adjust the flavour as per your need.
  16. Cook until the sauce is thick and completely coats the chicken, with a little gravy left in the bottom of the pan.



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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 178322Total Fat: 6962gSaturated Fat: 1914gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4091gCholesterol: 83441mgSodium: 80809mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 3gSugar: 9gProtein: 27125g

Nutritional information on islandsmile is provided as a courtesy. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on the site. these figures should only be considered as estimates.

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Sonia Jayatissa

Wednesday 22nd of December 2021

Hi Jehan,

Thank you for sharing this recipe. Just a quick question though, are the calorie amounts correct?

jehan

Thursday 23rd of December 2021

Hi Sonia, You are most welcome. The calory count comes with the recipe card, I assume the builders of the card would try their best to give you as accurate as possible numbers or close to it. I'm sure they've done a pretty good job to give you a close number as possible. hope this helps. regards J

Dysidoo

Saturday 30th of January 2021

I made this recipe for my family yesterday and it was a complete success ~ everybody loved it especially my husband. We like spice so I added a fresh chilli and extra veg, we live in the UK and I couldn’t find banana peppers so used regular red and orange pepper plus mange tout. Will definitely make again and will explore your other recipes. Thank you x

jehan

Tuesday 2nd of February 2021

Hi, Dysidoo, Thank you for your patience. So glad the family loved the recipe. I've also attached more devilled version recipes on the same recipe. search under more recipes on the same post. Anyone who loves spicy food is my kind of people, so welcome to my island smile family. Appreciate you trying the recipe and giving me feedback, please do not hesitate to contact me if you should have any problems with the recipe. Regards, Jehan

Mahesh

Monday 9th of March 2020

Hi Jehan, Thank you for the well explained recipe. I live in Australia and it is difficult to find banana peppers here. What do you think if I substitute it with Bell pepper? Cheers.

Mahesh

jehan

Monday 9th of March 2020

Hi Mahesh, Thank you.yes you can use banana pepper with bell pepper. I'll add it to the recipe later for my other readers as well. Regards Jehan

Anjali Kumarage

Thursday 4th of July 2019

Hi Jehan

Thank you very much for sharing these amazing recipes. I’m living in Japan with my son and husband and I miss my mom a lot when I’m cooking. I found your blog very recently and your recipes reminds me of her , very clearly explained and with every little detail. I tried one of your shrimp dish recently and it was delicious and got some good feedbacks. So thank you very much for sharing these amazing recipes. Much love

jehan

Thursday 4th of July 2019

Hi Anjali, Thank you for this lovely message, it does my heart good that many are finding the recipe content useful in their daily life. I know exactly how you feel when you say, you miss your mom's cooking, I was overseas for 10 years and had the same feeling. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with me if you need any help with the recipes, I write down every detail or process, problem I come across when I cook a recipe, it really feels good to be appreciated. And you are most welcome. J

Nick

Sunday 17th of February 2019

Absolutely fantastic took me back to Mt Lavinia hotel in columbo

jehan

Tuesday 19th of February 2019

Thank you, glad you enjoyed the recipe, I have added the Sri Lankan devilled beef as well, hope you give it a try.

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