Homestyle Chicken Curry

Now, I know I've mentioned "homestyle" chicken curry in this blog before, but as far as I can tell, I've never actually blogged how to make this.

This is a curry I grew up with, not what you get in a restaurant, or takeaway. Every weekend we would go to one of a handful of "aunty's" and "uncle's" homes (most were not related, but from our community, and so we always remained close) and every family would bring a dish, and we would all share the meal.  The regular dishes were chicken curry, meat curry, kofta (meatball) curry, potato cauliflower or potato peas, and one or 2 daals.  I swear I could always tell which "Aunty" had cooked which dish, just from the smell and taste, but sometimes we would also recognise the casserole set belonging to so-and-so, and that gave it away! 

Everyone cooked the same dishes, but with slight variations. For example, one chicken curry would use cardamom, another would not, yet another would have onions chopped finely, one would have large petals of onion still visible, and so on with the minor variations which had obviously been passed down through the generations within each family. Each child instinctively knew the aroma of their own home cooked food, and gravitated towards that by preference, but I did always have my own feelings about each cook's best dishes.

So when I grew up and developed an interest in cooking these dishes, particularly when my own grandmother had died, and my mother might be abroad for a few months of winter, I had to ask people to explain to me how to cook these things. My beloved sister-in-law is a terrific cook, and she kindly and patiently explained to my westernised brain how to write down a method for some of the foods I loved, and one of my closest Aunties, though slightly mystified, very vaguely described her process for making a few other dishes.

This chicken curry is one which that Aunty actually explained to Godpapa one time I was pregnant and craving home food, but unable to stomach the smell of cooking anything for myself. I've tweaked it to match up more with the flavour my own mother and grandmother cooked, so I will include both variations.

This is nothing like anything you would find in a "curry house".  That's not a bad thing. Once you try this, you will be hooked.

Use skinless drums and thighs ideally, but skinless thigh fillets will do in a pinch. I tend to use a 900g/1kg packet.

Finely chop an onion and fry gently in a large pressure cooker or saucepan in a little oil.

Once it is light brown (be patient, this is important for flavour) add a teaspoon each of grated ginger and garlic. (Be brave and experiment with the quantities of these. I prefer slightly more garlic and slightly less ginger. Many supermarkets now sell frozen grated/pureed ginger and garlic in very convenient cubes, and even mixed ginger and garlic frozen cubes. This makes life much easier for an occasional cook.)  

Stir them through until the sharp raw scent has mellowed and then add the chicken pieces and fry, stirring, until they are browned in places.

Now add:

1tsp cumin powder

1tsp coriander powder

(1 cardamom pod, slightly cracked - Aunty's version)

(a generous grinding of black pepper - my grandmother's version)

a small dried red chilli. Whole if you want it mild, twisted and crushed if you want a good kick.

You can also add chilli powder to taste if you like at this point.

Fry off the spices but be careful not to let them burn.

Now add either 3-4 chopped fresh tomatoes (Aunty), or a can of chopped tomatoes (my family) and a small splash of water also, and salt to taste, maybe half to one teaspoon.

Now either pressure cook for 15 minutes, or cover and simmer for 40 minutes until tender. If it is too watery, remove the lid and simmer until the gravy is thicker.

Enjoy with pulao rice or chapatis. But that's two whole other blog posts right there!

Thali meal of joy

I realise it has been a little while again, mainly because I have reached a core of good regular recipes I use, but also because I simply have less time to blog when I do do something new.
But I still add pics to my various social networking sites, and when I get lovely feedback, it impels me to update this blog. 

I had a really good time making supper yesterday, having been through a bit of a slump of lack of inspiration and tiredness, and with Godpapa's suggestion of serving the meal on thalis, the meal was just perfect and all three kids ate with much pleasure.

It was a very simple meal, really, and only took under an hour to prepare, but it was a really good compilation.  It was the pickled prawn curry which I have blogged before here, along with a very simple cauliflower and pea curry, a mix of Basmati, brown and wild rices, and some quick and easy but crunchy and tasty hake fish pakoras.

 The smaller kids have little thalis which are less intimidating.

Inside a fish pakora. Batter should be crispy and the fish should be fully cooked but still moist inside.

The cauliflower was very easy and I put that on to cook first.  

I fried some cumin seeds and turmeric powder in a little oil until the cumin started to pop.  Then I tipped in half a bag of frozen cauliflower. Obviously fresh would also work, but this had been taking up much needed space in my freezer and I wanted to use it up.  I tossed it about to coat it, and sprinkled on some garam masala.  My home made spice mix, which I make mostly according to a Vicky Bhogal "recipe". (Looks like I have never blogged it, so I will in a separate post.)
I then chopped in a few wrinkling tomatoes and a splash of water, and a little of the tinned tomatoes I was using in the prawns. (I also added some chopped wrinkly cherry tomatoes to the prawns.)  About half a teaspoon of salt sprinkled over, then lid on and left to simmer for a few minutes.
At the very end I poured in a cupful of frozen peas, and switched it off. The residual heat heats the peas and you want them fresh and vibrant green, not grey green and shrivelled.

Meanwhile I made the pakora batter in a bowl and Godpapa helped me by kindly cubing the hake fillet up.

About a cup of gram flour, also known as chickpea flour or besan, a tablespoon of sesame seeds, a teaspoon of salt, half a teaspoon of ground cumin, and half a teaspoon of ground coriander.  Mix evenly, then slowly add about a third of a cup of cold water. I also remembered I had an open bottle of cheap value basics savers type fizzy water, so added a little splash of that as an afterthought a la Ready Steady Cook.  The batter should be thick not runny, I suppose slightly thicker than pancake batter.

I then put the fish pieces into the batter, and gently deep fried them in my karahi.  If you have a deep fat fryer, this would be much quicker. I had to do it in several batches.  I don't fry often, especially not deep fry, I'm not going to justify it, or even explain in detail how to do it, as you kind find that info anywhere online if you have never done it before.  Though I will say, if it helps, make sure the oil is hot enough by dripping a drop of batter into the pan. If it sizzles and pops straight to the surface, the oil is just right.  Don't do too many at a time, and drain on kitchen paper.

The rice cooked itself in the rice cooker, I used a Waitrose brown and wild rice mix, and cut it with basmati which I buy in big bags when it is on offer around Eid and Diwali.

To make things look nice, I spooned the rice into little ramekins and turned it onto the main thali spaces, which amused the kids as that is how Masala Zone serves their thalis.

Even Big'Un who normally won't eat prawns ate 3 helpings of the prawn curry, and Littl'Un who has only recently started eating fish again had 2 pakoras.  Tiny also ate all he was given and had more, though the rice was on the chewy side for him it seems.  Brown rice can be a bit too filling for little tummies, which can mean they don't get enough protein or veg, so I cut back their rice servings accordingly and it went better.

The pakora batter is useful for all sorts of things, incidentally! Veggies, small pieces of chicken, onions (of course!) and some people make "bread pakora" as a snack, where squares of bread are sandwiched with a thin layer of ketchup, dipped in the batter and deep fried.  It can also me made into a sort of pancake which is more reminiscent of an omelette, useful for vegans and anyone allergic to eggs, especially as it is very protein rich.

Have fun, and remember to present food beautifully when you can!