Goan chicken caferal

This dish comes from the state of Goa on the west coast of India. It tastes rather unusual for a chicken because it is mostly sour. It is also hot, if you use hot chilies. This combination might not be to everybody's taste, however, I liked it when I made it for the firt time and I continue enjoying it once in a while. It is also good cold as a quick snack. It takes slightly over an hour to make, plus 7 hours to marinate before roasting.

1 lb chicken
1/4 c lime juice
3 green chili, cut up finely
1 T coriander seeds, pounded in a mortar
1 t ginger paste
1 t garlic paste
1/2 inch cinnamon bark (or equivalent quantity of ground cinnamon)
8-10 pepper, ground
salt

Make a marinade:
in a bowl, combine green chili, coriander seeds, ginger, garlic, pepper, lime juice and salt. Cover the chicken with the mixture and leave to marinate for 6-7 hours.

Roast:
Preheat oven to 325F/180C (slow moderate oven). Place the chicken on a tray, cover with foil, roast for 45 mins. Remove the foil and roast for further 15 mins. (I don't remove the foil because I prefer when some juices are left with the meat.)

Remove the chicken from the roasting tray and leave to rest.

Spaghetti alio e olio

Still inspired by Lewis, who seems to have enjoyed himself over the weekend eating astonishing amounts of pasta, I am posting a recipe for this simple and fulfilling pasta dish. It's quick (15 mins at the most), cheap and very tasty. If you like the ingredients, that is.

spaghetti no. 5 or 6 (just regular spaghetti) or spaghettini no. 10 (thin and delicate) or bucatini (thick and tough)
olive oil
garlic cloves
chili powder
parmesan cheese, capers, anchovies (optional)

Cook spaghetti al dente and rinse in cold water, transfer to a bowl. Meanwhile, peel as much garlic as you like - I usually peel two cloves - and heat some olive oil in a small pan. Slice the garlic and fry it gently in the oil until it begins to turn brown. The idea is to flavor the oil with garlic without burning it. Pour over pasta. Sprinkle with chili powder or hot paprika. Toss lightly. Enjoy.

I've been using Kashmiri mirch for this dish because it's the best chili powder I've ever tasted.

You can also add parmesan cheese, capers, anchovies or whatever you like but the basic recipe is only garlic and chili.

Drying Kashmiri mirch (by Getty Images)

I've had so much of this recently that I began to suspect I am developing an addiction. This was confirmed by a documentary I watched, where they said people develop carbohydrate addictions and eat pasta every single day to fix their mood swings and energy levels. Obviously, they get fat doing so. But I think my addiction was rather to Kashmiri mirch. Since I am running out of it and my supermarket has also run out, I'm safe.