← Nouns Cooking · Indian

Ingredients

• 800 g boneless chicken thighs (or 1 kg bone-in pieces), cut into bite-size pieces
• ½ tsp Ground turmeric
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 8 dried red chillies (Byadgi or Kashmiri)
• 2 tbsp Coriander seeds
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• ½ tsp black peppercorns
• ½ tsp Fennel seeds
• 4 Cloves
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
• 100 g freshly grated coconut (or 60 g desiccated)
• 3 tbsp coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
• 2 Onion, finely chopped
• 6 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 3 cm piece Ginger, finely chopped
• 1 sprig Curry leaves
• 100 ml Water
• 1 tsp Tamarind paste
• ½ tsp salt, or to taste
• 2 tbsp Coriander (cilantro), chopped

Method

1. Mix the chicken with the turmeric, salt and lemon juice and leave for 30 min while you make the masala.
2. Dry-roast the chillies, coriander seeds, cumin, peppercorns, fennel, cloves, cinnamon and fenugreek in a frying pan over low heat for 2–3 min, until fragrant. Tip onto a plate.
3. In the same pan, toast the coconut over medium-low heat for 5–6 min, stirring constantly, until evenly golden. Grind the spices to a powder, then add the coconut and pulse to a coarse, crumbly mix.
4. Heat the oil in a heavy pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 8–10 min until golden, then add the garlic, ginger and curry leaves for 1 minute.
5. Add the chicken and fry for 5 min until sealed. Pour in the water and tamarind, cover and cook for 10 min, until the chicken is almost done.
6. Uncover, add the coconut masala and salt and stir-fry over medium heat for 5–7 min, until the liquid has gone and the masala coats every piece. Check the chicken reaches 75°C (165°F). Scatter with coriander and serve with neer dosa, rice or chapati.

Tips

• Toast the coconut slowly: it goes from golden to burnt in seconds, and burnt coconut makes the dish bitter.
• Byadgi chillies give a deep red colour with moderate heat; use fewer if yours are hot.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Ministry of Curry Ranveer Brar