Chicken Masala Curry

Today I am presenting a rustic and authentic recipe for chicken masala curry. It’s packed with whole spices and tonnes of flavor. I have been making this recipe for a very long time now and it’s a hit with my folks. Personally I do not like eating curries in restaurants. Reason is their curries are loaded with cream and are way too heavy on the stomach. Almost all the curries taste the same and fail to bring out the true flavor of the main ingredient i.e chicken. I have tried to keep the recipe simple by adding whole spices which makes the chicken flavorful and also imparts a nice fragrance in the dish. It is equally enjoyed with rice, naan or roti.

Ingredients:

1 kg chicken

3 large onions

2 large tomatoes

3-4 slit green chillies

8-10 whole black pepper

1 pinch hing

2-3 bay leaves

2 tsp zeera

3-4 green cardamoms

3-4 cloves

1 big cinnamon stick

1 tbsp whole coriander seeds

1 tsp red chilli powder

2 tbsp corainader powder

1 tsp haldi

Salt to taste

For the marination:

4-5 tbsp curd

2 tbsp ginger paste

2 tbsp garlic paste

½ tsp ajwain

1 tbsp garam masala

Salt to taste

Method:

1.       Take a big vessel. Put all the marination ingredients along with the chicken. Mix well with hands and refrigerate overnight or for at least 2-3 hours.

2.       Heat oil in a pan. Add hing, zeera, clove, cardamoms, cinnamon stick, whole black pepper, coriander seeds  and bay leaves. Let them crackle.

3.       Now add finely chopped onions along with 2-3 slit green chillies. Adding the chillies at this stage gives a nice flavor to the oil. Sauté till the onions become translucent.

4.       Add chopped tomatoes along with salt, red chilli powder, coriander powder and haldi. Sauté till the mixture starts leaving oil.

5.       Now add the marinated chicken and sauté for 10-15 minutes. Sautéing the chicken will bring out more flavor.

6.       Add some water, cover with a lid and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes.

7.       Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot with rice, naan or roti.