Chetna Makan‘s chicken and potato curry is cooked in pickling spices for a slightly different, more interesting flavour. She says:
”It’s the mustard oil and spices – a combination normally used for pickling – that make this chicken curry taste very different. It has a deep, spicy flavour with an interesting character that’s well worth experiencing. I like to keep the skin on the potatoes to give the dish a little more body – and fibre, too. Serve this curry with chapatis or rice.”
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp mustard oil or vegetable oil (see Know-how)
- Pinch ground asafoetida (from Ocado, Asian grocers and online)
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 tsp fennel seeds
- 2 tsp nigella seeds
- 4 dried red chillies
- 2 red onions, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 1½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 8 free-range skinless chicken pieces on the bone (I use 4 thighs and 4 drumsticks)
- 100ml natural yogurt
- 2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder (see Know-how)
- 2 unpeeled medium potatoes, sliced into 1cm rounds
Method
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a low-medium heat until smoking hot. Add the asafoetida and sizzle for a few seconds, then stir in all the seeds and dried red chillies.
- Increase the heat to medium and sizzle for about 1 minute more, ensuring the seeds don’t burn. Once they start to change colour, add the onions and cook for 10-12 minutes until the onions are golden brown.
- Stir the garlic and ginger into the pan and cook for another minute, then mix in the tomato purée, salt, turmeric and chilli powder. Mix well.
- Add the chicken pieces to the saucepan, increase the heat to high and stir for 2 minutes. Cover the pan with a lid, reduce the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes, turning halfway through, until the chicken is half cooked (see tip).
- Mix the yogurt and Kashmiri chilli powder together in a bowl. Stir this mixture into the saucepan and add the potato rounds. Combine well, then cover the pan with a lid and simmer gently over a low heat for 20-25 minutes until the chicken and potatoes are cooked through. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
- 421kcals Calories
- 11.9g (2.5g saturated) Fat
- 48.2g Protein
- 5.2g (8.3g sugars) Carbs
- 5.2g Fibre
- 0.7g Salt
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