Karhai Chicken

So its been ages since I posted on the blog, but I am back with a cracking recipe for the infamous Karhai Chicken! At the end of last year I was focusing mostly to study for the CFA exam and really did not blog at all but was cooking and taking pictures so have a lot of recipes to post!

 

Anyway, I have no idea why chicken tikka masala is so popular when more people could be eating this oh so aahmazing creation!! This one is another crazy finger licking good Punjabi dish with strong flovours. Loads of tomatoes, ginger, garlic and of course coriander and dried fenugreek leaves create a perfect combination. I think anyone who tries this can not resist its charms…actually even anyone who smells it and looks at it can’t resist tasting it… There are so many shady versions of it floating around in Indian restaurants which don’t really look or taste anything like the real deal, and you would have seen karhai paneer too, which should be the same sauce but just with paneer added at the end instead of chicken. So for those of you who want an out of this world authentic and relatively painless chicken recipe that will transport you to Delhi here it is…

This recipe has no onions in it and once you get it going to the point of adding the chicken in, you pretty much just stir once in a while till the oil separates from the tomato gravy. It is a truly sublime recipe to be devoured with some tasty tandoori roti or a nice buttered naan! Please try this, it is really not one you want to have missed.

Now for this recipe the real deal is to make it in 7 tbsp of ghee but I like to use 2 tbsp so I get the ghee flavor and then make up for the other 5 tbsp with vegetable oil. And I think it totally works with keeping the calories a bit lower. Anyway feel free to use only oil if you have no ghee, it will still be amazing, and I usually just do that.

It has been sub zero temperatures in New York and I have really been having the hugest cravings for good warming Indian dishes. I made Dum Aaloo, and a very tasty easy and quick mushrooms and pea dish along with this. So I look out for those soon too.

KARHAI CHICKEN

Serves 4

1 kg skinless chicken legs (or a whole chicken cut into 8 pieces, whatever you prefer)
3 ½ tsp garlic finely chopped or paste /20 grams garlic
1 kg tomatoes chopped (you can even use chopped canned tomatoes or half fresh and half canned)

4 green chillies chopped

40 grams ginger chopped

Small bunch of coriander chopped
1 tbsp coriander seeds
8 whole dry red chillies
2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp dried fenugreek (kasoori methi)
2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
5 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt to taste

In a pestle and mortar grind the coriander seeds and red chillies.
Heat ghee/oil in a pan, add garlic paste and sauté over medium heat until light brown. Add the dry spices, stir for 30 seconds, add tomatoes, bring to a boil, add green chillies, ginger and a third of the chopped coriander (use the chopped stems here), reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes.

Add chicken, bring to a boil, simmer, stirring occasionally until the fat leaves the masala, the gravy becomes thick and the chicken is tender. Sprinkle garam masala and fenugreek leaves (which have been rolled in your hand and crushed over the chicken so they release their aroma) and stir for a couple of minutes. Adjust the seasoning. Garnish with remaining chopped coriander and serve with Indian bread of your choice.