cookeatblog.com » Indian Food

Coriander Chicken Curry

leej — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:00:53 +0000

This is a deliciously fragrant and flavoursome curry from Southern Tamil Nadu. The use of coriander creates a beautiful rich and aromatic gravy that compliments the chicken perfectly. I like my curries with plenty of sauce so I made sure I upped the liquid to do just that – lots of sauce to soak up the plentiful basmati rice I served alongside.

INGREDIENTS:
1.5kg chicken (skinned and jointed into 8 pieces)
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 onions (finely chopped)
7 garlic cloves (finely chopped)
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 teaspoons white poppy seeds
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 cardamom pods
20 fresh curry leaves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
800ml chicken stock
3 cups fresh coriander leaves and stalks (pounded in a pestle & mortar into a paste)
1/2 lemon (juice of)

DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a large pan over a moderate heat until just hot. Add the onion, garlic, fenugreek, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, poppy seeds, pepper, cardamom pods and curry leaves and fry for 5 minutes until the onion is softened and golden brown.

Add the ground cumin, coriander, turmeric, garam masala, ginger, cayenne pepper and salt and stir for 5-10 seconds before adding the chicken pieces and 1/2 cup water. Stir fry for 1-2 minutes before adding the chicken stock and half the fresh coriander. Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to low and simmer gently (uncovered) for 45 minutes. Stir in the remaining coriander, remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice just before serving.

SERVING:
Serve with lots of basmati rice to soak up all the delicious sauce.

Chickpeas in Spiced Yoghurt Sauce

leej — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 11:30:48 +0000

I love chickpeas. They’re so versatile and always filling and delicious. Cooking them in a curry is a great way to create a substantial vegetarian option or side dish. Tonight, I ate some fish and wanted to accompany with a rich side. The sauce for this dish is deliciously rich and fragrant and clings to the chickpeas. It’s pretty damn delicious.

INGREDIENTS:
7 tablespoons peanut oil
1 onion (finely sliced)
1 onion (finely diced)
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
5cm cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 stem fresh curry leaves
5 black peppercorns
1 teaspoon garlic (grated)
1 teaspoon ginger (grated)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons natural yoghurt
1 x 400g can chickpeas

DIRECTIONS:
Heat on a moderate temperature the peanut oil in a medium frying pan until hot. Fry the sliced onion for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onions have gone dark brown and crisp. Drain and reserve the oil and drain the onion on paper towels. Set aside.

Using 3 tablespoons of the reserved oil, heat in a medium saucepan until hot. Tip in the cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cinnamon, fenugreek curry leaves and peppercorns – let them sizzle briefly before adding the diced onion. Cook for 3-4 minutes until soft and golden. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for another minute until fragrant. Add the ground cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli powder, curry powder and salt and again, stir briefly. Stir in the yoghurt and 1/2 cup water and bring to a simmer. Let the sauce cook for 5 minutes until the oil separates. Pour in 350ml water and the chickpeas and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer for 15 minutes until the sauce is reduced. Remove from the heat. Stir in the fried onion and serve.

Goan Chicken Vindaloo

leej — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:00:58 +0000

I’m always up for a spicy curry. Tonight’s offering I deliberately made as hot as hell! I really wanted to know that I’d eaten it!! I love the sweet and sour taste of Goan cuisine – quite unlike the other cuisines of India. Vindaloo, arguably it’s most famous dish, is among my absolute favourites. Lots of vinegar gives this curry it’s distinctive sour note – Introduced by the Portuguese in the 14th Century, vinegar amongst other ingredients, made it’s way into the local cuisine and it’s never left. As I said, I spiced this curry up by adding even more chilli and cayenne than is listed below. You can decide how much you want. But do remember – vindaloo is supposed to be spicy – but it needn’t blow your toilet apart! 1 teaspoon of each chilli powder will make a medium spice, 2 of each will make a medium to hot… 3 of each is just how I like it.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1.5kg chicken (jointed into 8 pieces)
3 onions (sliced)
20 fresh curry leaves
5 cloves
5 black peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick
2 tomatoes (chopped)
1-2 teaspoons salt

For the paste:
2 teaspoons grated garlic
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoons Kashmiri chilli powder
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon white poppy seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sugar
4 tablespoons cider vinegar

DIRECTIONS:
Mix together all the paste ingredients and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a moderate heat. Add the curry leaves, cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon stick and sizzle for 5-10 seconds. Add the sliced onion and gently fry for 7-8 minutes until soft and browned. Now add the spice paste and stir well for 30 seconds before adding the chicken pieces. Stir well again before adding the tomato. Cook for 3-4 minutes until mushy then pour in 500ml water. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to very low. Simmer gently (partially covered) for 30 minutes then remove the lid and simmer for a further 30 minutes until the chicken is tender and the sauce slightly reduced. Remove from the heat, season with the salt to your personal taste and serve.

SERVING:
Serve with lots of fluffy basmati rice to soak up all the delicious and spicy sauce.

Punjabi Chicken in Pickling Spices

leej — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:00:27 +0000

Suffering from a rather magnificent hangover, tonight I ~~wanted~~ needed something spicy to lift my spirits and bring me back to life. This Punjabi curry, which is traditionally cooked with lamb seemed like a good contender. I didn’t have the energy to go buy lamb so lazily opted for chicken, which was in my fridge, instead. It worked a treat. I love discovering new flavours with Indian food and the pickling spice flavours are just amazing. This is a dish worthy of a top place in my curry hall of fame. A wonderfully complex and flavour filled sauce quite unlike any other I’ve tasted. Truly delicious.

INGREDIENTS:
1 onion (sliced)
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1kg chicken thighs (cut into chunks)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 cup mustard oil
8 dried red chillies
1 cup natural yoghurt
1-2 teaspoons salt

Whole spices:
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
20 fresh curry leaves
6 cloves
5 black peppercorns

Spice Paste:
2 teaspoons nigella seeds
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder (or normal chilli powder)
2 teaspoons garlic puree
2 teaspoons ginger puree
1 tablespoon palm sugar

DIRECTIONS:
Combine all the whole spices and set aside.

Combine all the spice paste ingredients together and set aside.

Heat the peanut oil in a large saucepan over a moderate heat. Gently fry the onion for 6 minutes until golden and caramalised. Remove from the pan and blend into a puree. Set aside.

In the same pan, bring to a boil 1.25 litres water with the turmeric over a moderate heat. Add the chicken and simmer gently for 35 minutes until cooked. Remove from the heat then drain the chicken over a large sieve, reserving the stock.

In the same saucepan, heat the mustard oil until hot. Add the dried chillies and stir fry for 30 seconds. Remove the chillies and discard. Add the whole spices to the pan and let them splutter for 5-10 seconds before adding the chicken pieces and the spice paste. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the chicken is lightly browned before adding the pureed onion and half the reserved stock. Let this come to a vigorous boil and reduce for 5 minutes. Add half the remaining stock and all the yoghurt and stir well. Let this come to a boil and again reduce for 5 minutes. Season with salt to your taste and serve.

SERVING:
Serve with lots of basmati rice. I used the remaining stock as part of the liquid to cook the rice and it turned out jolly nicely.

Chicken Palak

leej — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 23:12:40 +0000

I have a few chicken and spinach curries on the site already so I hadn’t really planned on putting this one on too, but when It turned out so deliciously I just had to share. The canned pureed spinach gave the overall dish a beautiful glossy sheen quite unlike that of fresh spinach. It was a moderately spiced affair, but really fragrant – there’s plentiful sauce too which suits me perfectly – I could have ladled it into my greedy mouth. I practically did. Great stuff.

INGREDIENTS:
Curry Paste:
1 cinnamon stick
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon white poppy seeds (black if you can’t get white)
4 cloves
5-8 dried red chillies (you decide)
3 black cardamom pods
4 green cardamom pods
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds

Other ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
3 onions (thinly sliced)
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic (grated)
3 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
2 medium tomatoes
1kg chicken thigh fillets (cut into chunks)
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 x 400g can spinach
1/2 cup fresh cream (optional)

To make the paste:
In a dry frying pan, gently toast all the whole spices for about 40 seconds until fragrant and lightly browned. Remove from the pan to a spice grinder or pestle and mortar and grind into a fine powder. Combine with the turmeric powder and 1/2 cup water into a smooth paste and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pan over a moderate heat until just hot. Gently fry the onions for 4-5 minutes until golden brown. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for one minute before adding the spice paste. Stir briefly to coat all the onion then add the tomatoes. Stir until the tomatoes turn to mush (you may need a little splash of water if they start to stick. Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes before adding 400ml water, half the salt and half the can of spinach. Stir until simmering then reduce the heat to very low and cook gently, partially covered for 40 minutes – stirring occasionally. Add the remaining spinach and cook for 5 more minutes. Stir in the cream (if using) and bring to a simmer then remove from the heat. Season with more of the salt if needed and serve.

SERVING:
Serve with plenty of Indian breads or basmati rice.

Sindhi Chicken & Spinach Curry

leej — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 22:43:46 +0000

An Indian friend of mine told me that his mother always makes any spinach curry using either canned or frozen spinach over fresh. She swears by it and claims it to be much better, and easier than using fresh. I was intrigued so settled on one of my favourite North Indian/Pakistani curries tonight using frozen. I must say, it was so much easier, I can never be bothered to wilt, drain, squeeze then chop the spinach – buying the ready chopped dispenses with all the hard work. This curry is supremely tasty – rich, silky and surprisingly fresh. It’s one of the tastiest curries in a while. Delicious stuff.

INGREDIENTS:
2 onions (roughly chopped)
1 tablespoon fresh ginger (grated)
5 cloves garlic (grated)
2 green chillies (roughly chopped)
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
450g chopped frozen spinach
1kg chicken thighs (cut into large chunks)

Curry Paste:
2 large tomatoes (roughly chopped)
1 tablespoon Kashmiri chilli powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon groung turmeric
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 teaspoons salt

DIRECTIONS:
In a food processor, blend together the onion, ginger, garlic and chilli into a smooth paste. Tip into a bowl and set aside. Add the tomatoes, chilli powder, cumin, coriander, turmeric, garam masala and salt to the food processor and blend into a smooth paste. Tip into a separate bowl and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pan over a moderate heat. Fry the onion paste for 5 minutes until lightly golden. Add the frozen spinach and cook for 10 minutes, stirring regularly until fully defrosted. Add the chicken thighs and cook for a further 5 minutes before adding the curry paste and 250ml water. Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to very low and gently simmer for 45 minutes, partially covered.

Remove from the heat, check for seasoning and serve.

SERVING:
Serve with Indian breads or fluffy basmati rice.

Lamb In A Red Curry Sauce

leej — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 14:00:31 +0000

This is a deliciously fiery curry from the north of India. In a wonderful rich and vibrant sauce, the tender lamb just melted in my mouth and then left it tingling with its chilli afterburn. It’s not ridiculously spiced but does pack a little punch so if you’re a chilliphobe you can tone it down by adding less chilli. But then again, if you’re a chilliphobe – why are you even making a curry? I’ve changed my mind, leave the recipe as it is and you’ll have a wonderful curry – guaranteed.

INGREDIENTS:
1kg lamb (large cubes)
3 tablespoons ghee
2 onions (thinly sliced)
2 teaspoons fresh ginger (grated)
6 garlic cloves (grated)
1 teaspoon white poppy seeds (substitute with normal if you can’t find)
4 black cardamom (or 6 green if you can’t find)
1 cinnamon stick
6 cloves
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 teaspoons Kashmiri chilli powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup plain yoghurt
400g can finely chopped tomatoes
1 bunch fresh coriander (stalks and all – chopped)

DIRECTIONS:
Heat the ghee in a large pan over a moderate heat. When melted, add the poppy seeds, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves and stir for 30 seconds. Add the onions and fry gently for 4-5 minutes until soft and golden. Add the turmeric, cumin, coriander, paprika, cayenne pepper, chilli powder and salt and stif briefly before adding the meat and half the yoghurt. Turn up the heat to high and stir until bubbling. Add the remaining yoghurt and once again stir until bubbling. Let the sauce bubble vigorously for a few minutes until you see the oil separate from the sauce. Tip in the tomatoes then fill the tin with water twice and pour into the pan. Let this come to a boil, then reduce the heat to very low and simmer gently for 2 hours. Remove the lid after 1 1/2 hours to reduce the sauce. Remove from the heat, stir in the fresh coriander, check for seasoning and serve.

SERVING:
I served mine with roti breads but it will obviously work with rice too.

Kidney Bean Curry

leej — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:00:06 +0000

Here’s a delicious and quick vegetarian curry that’s surprisingly satisfying and tasty. I had a houseful of people tonight so prepared three curries to feed them all, of which this was one. It seemed to go down well, as there was not a scrap of it left. Kidney beans are really good for you – jammed with fibre, vitamins, iron, folate etc etc. It’s fair to say they’re a superfood – and apologies for the lame segway but this curry was pretty super too.

INGREDIENTS:
2 tablespoons ghee (or vegetable oil)
1 small onion
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
5 black peppercorns
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons grated fresh garlic
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon chilli powder
½ teaspoon salt
200g chopped tomatoes
400g can kidney beans

DIRECTIONS:
Heat the ghee in a saucepan until just hot. Gently fry the onion, cumin, poppy seeds, peppercorns, garlic and ginger for 4-5 minutes until translucent. Add the ground cumin, coriander, paprika, turmeric, chilli powder and salt and stir for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and 300ml water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to very low, cover the pan and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Add the kidney beans and simmer again for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, check for seasoning and serve.

SERVING:
Works perfectly well on its own with Indian bread or rice, or as part of a larger spread of Indian style dishes.

Karnatakan Black Pepper Chicken

leej — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 14:00:45 +0000

This curry hails from the Southern Indian state of Karnataka. For thousands of years the Indians have been using pepper to spice dishes. Long before the chilli was introduced to India from the New World, the peppercorn’s dry heat was used to give food kick. The flavour is a different kind of spice, a slow lingering heat which is really very delicious. Unusually, this curry is baked in the oven, which I have never encountered before. I’m not sure how this effects the flavour, if at all, but the finished dish is one of the tastiest curries I’ve cooked in a while. Thankfully, there is a lot leftover, some of which I will be scoffing for lunch.

INGREDIENTS:
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 medium onions (sliced)
6 garlic cloves (minced)
2cm piece fresh ginger (minced)
6 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon chilli powder
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 fresh green chillies (finely chopped)
4 black cardamom pods (or 6 green)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
30 fresh curry leaves
1kg chicken thighs (cut into large chunks)
500ml chicken stock
5 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 medium bunch coriander (roughly chopped, stalks and leaves)

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 190ºC

Heat the 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan over a low heat. Gently fry the onions for 15 minutes until soft and caramalised. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for a further 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and spoon into a food processor. Blend into a smooth puree and set aside.

Return the frying pan to a moderate heat with 1 tablespoon of oil and when hot, add the black pepper, paprika, chilli powder and ground coriander and stir fry for about 30 seconds. Add the onion puree and stir well for about 1 minute until fragrant. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Heat a large lidded casserole pan with the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil over a moderate heat. When hot, add the fresh chillies, cardamom pods, cumin seeds and curry leaves and simmer briefly before adding the chicken – fry for 5 minutes to brown lightly then add the onion paste, chicken stock, red wine vinegar and salt and stir well. Bring to a simmer then remove from the heat. Place in the oven with the lid on and cook, stirring occasionally for 40 minutes. Stir in the chopped coriander and bake for a further 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.

SERVING:
Serve alongside lots of fluffy basmati rice.

Bengali Fish Curry with Coconut and Poppy Seeds

leej — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:00:02 +0000

I love fish curries! What can I say, they’re so quick and delicious! I’m always on the lookout for something out of the ordinary and this Bengali preparation delivers just that. Using all the flavours associated with the Bengali region; mustard oil, poppy seeds and coconut, I was treated to a really unusual and truly amazing flavour. An almost peanutty rich and creamy sauce which is out of this world delicious. I absolutely loved it. I’ll be making this again soon without a doubt.

INGREDIENTS:
500g white fish (skinned, boned and cut into chunks)
4 tablespoons mustard oil
4 dried Kasmiri chillies
20 curry leaves
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1½ tablespoons poppy seeds
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground coriander
4 small hot green chillies (finely chopped)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
300ml coconut milk
1 tablespoon tamarind paste

DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan until hot. Add the dried chillies and curry leaves and fry for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, scoop out the chillies and leaves and place into a pestle and mortar along with the cumin seeds, poppy seeds, turmeric, coriander, fresh green chillies, salt, sugar and 1 tablespoon water and pound for about 5 minutes into a smooth paste.

Pour off half of the oil from the wok, then heat over a moderate temperature until hot again. Add the paste along with another tablespoon water and fry for 1 minute. Pour in 200ml water and stir well. Bring to a bubble and simmer for 5 minutes until the sauce has reduced by half and the oil separates. Pour in the coconut milk and stir well. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer gently, uncovered for 10 minutes until reduced to a consistency of cream. Add the fish chunks and simmer for 5 minutes until cooked through. Very gently stir in the tamarind paste and adjust salt & sugar levels to your taste.

SERVING:
I served mine with lots of fragrant Basmati Kitchari (recipe coming soon), topped with a handful of finely chopped celery and radish for crunch.