I love to experiment with curry recipes but if I ask my son what he wants me to cook for him I would bet that 99% of the time he would choose this chicken curry recipe. I can’t remember how long I have been making it, must be 35 years at least. I have shared it with my best friends and I dread to think how many times between us we have made it over the years. I suppose that is credit to the fantastic recipe and the fact that it appears to be failsafe. If you want a curry for a dinner party and know it will turn out well then this is the dish for you. I have even made it the day before, chilled quickly and left refrigerated until the next day, so I can get ahead for a stress free dinner with friends. If anything the flavours improve with keeping!
The recipe comes from a book called ‘Complete Indian Cookbook’ by Michael Pandya. It was the first cookery book Terry ever bought me (a hidden agenda there I think). The writing on the page for this recipe is almost obliterated by splashed of curry and spices, a great testament to a well used and love recipe!
There is a belief amongst Indian food lovers that the spicy and exotic food makes you sexy and virile, so be warned. Of course you will have a long way to go before you can beat the claims of Lord Krishna of India. He supposedly had 16,000 wives and countless casual and serious girlfriends! I dread to think how much it cost him when they all went shopping for clothes. Based on this, however, I might increase our curry nights to twice a week in future!
Chicken Curry Serves 4 – 6 (depending on the size of the chicken)
- 100g/4oz ghee (or unsalted butter if you can’t get ghee)
- 2 medium onions, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 1/2 oz root ginger, chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 whole chicken, skinned and cut into 8 – 10 pieces
- 4 tbsp full fat Greek yogurt
- 300ml/1/2pt hot water
- salt to taste
- Chopped fresh coriander or parsley to garnish
Spices
- 4 cloves
- 1 x 2 inch piece cinnamon stick
- 4 black peppercorns
- 1 brown cardamom
- 2 green cardamoms
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp hot chilli powder
- 1 tsp garam masala
- Grind the first five spices to a powder. Melt the ghee in a large pan and fry the onion with these spices until golden brown. Takes about 10 minutes over a low heat.
- Add the tomato puree, ginger, lemon juice, turmeric, chilli and garam masala and mix well. Add the chicken pieces and stir until they are well coated in the spice mix. Cook over a low heat for 15 minutes.
- Whip the yogurt then slowly add the hot water, stirring between each addition to prevent it from curdling. Add the salt , mix then stir into the chicken and spices. Bring to the boil then cover and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
- Sprinkle with chopped coriander and serve.
Tasty Advice 