by sungod on Wed Dec 14, 2011 8:29 pm
my easy low-fat chicken curry...
2 onions, chopped
3 cardamon pods
1 heaped tsp cumin seeds (ordinary, not black cumin)
2 sq cm piece of cinnamon (the proper stuff, not the fake type that is actually cassia)
in a saucepan, add the above to a little olive oil, 1-2 tbsp is plenty, fry until onions just start browning
then add...
2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 inch ginger, finely chopped
fry for a couple more minutes, then add...
5-6 chopped chillis, including seeds
500g chicken breast, in bite-sized chunks
1 heaped tsp tumeric
1 heaped tsp garam masala
stir until chicken lightly seared all over (don't brown the chicken)
then add a 400g can of chopped tomatos in natural juice (not the type with added sugar etc.), plus the half that amount of water
add a couple of curry leaves, break them up first
stir, bring to boil, lower heat, cover and allow to simmer very gently for a couple of hours
before serving remove cinnamon and cardamon pods
serve with rice
to garnish, finely chop a naga* chili, sprinkle over curry once it is on the plate
eat
the above quantity feeds two if you are a greedy guts like me
multiply quantities for more servings but avoid using much more cinnamon as it becomes overpowering
personally i don't find it needs salt, but my girlriend disagrees
if you don't have the spices: beware supermarkets, they will sell tiny quantities at many times the cost you'd pay in an asian grocers, at least in the uk the exception seems to be "east end" brand spices which are in big bags, cheap, and usually not displayed next to the rip-off spice rack (try looking near the curry sauces)
* this is what the chap in the local bangladeshi shop calls them, they look like wrinkly mini-peppers, hot but fragrant, not to be confused with the naga that is the seriously hot one
