Curried Chicken Feet / Walkie Talkies

In Xhosa we call them “amanqina enkukhu”. In Jozi they are called “maotwana” /“walkie talkies” or “runaways”. I always see my colleagues having pap and chicken feet for lunch. Where I come from we grew up having them as a snack, especially in high school…one of my classmates used to sell them for 20c each. In the townships you find them everywhere including the street vendors. They are even braaied. Yum!

This is my mom’s favourite snack….after biltong. If you’ve never tried them you may wonder what’s there to eat from these feet. The funny thing is that there is actually meat. We even crush the bones. There’s just something about them…or maybe the bone crushing is therapeutic? Mmmmmm…I don’t know…you just have to try them yourself. Chicken feet are high in protein, low in kilojoules and they won’t make your hands go deep into your pockets so they are perfect for spring. The downside though is that they are quite sticky. You need to wash the hands afterwards, I mean wash not wipe.

In this dish, the chicken feet are served with a spicy chakalaka and pap. So, ladies and gentleman this is a hand affair…neither spoons, knives nor folks necessary. Just ensure that your hands are clean. Geniet!

Curried Chicken Feet Recipe

Serves: 4

± 500g chicken feet and / or heads

250ml (1cup) boiling water

5ml (1tsp) medium curry powder

2.5ml (½ tsp) tumeric

5ml (1tsp) black pepper

5ml (1tsp) salt

30ml 2Tbsp) olive oil

Method:

Immerse the heads and feet in a bowl of hot water and soak for about 2 minutes. Pluck feathers from heads and remove the beak and nails. Remove scales from the feet and remove nails, if any. Transfer the cleaned feet and heads into a saucepan. Add water, curry powder, black pepper, salt and stir. Put on heat until cooked, stirring occasionally. Remove broth, if any is left. Add olive /cooking oil and sauté for about 3 minutes. Serve as snack or with pap.

#grilgeniet #chicken #afval #curry