Indian
Chicken Achari
I normally try to keep things simpler than this recipe, but our favorite Indian restaurant stopped doing Achari a while ago and I can’t live without it! I found a nice recipe, made some modifications and it’s every bit as good as a restaurant curry.
Serves 4-6
The spice mix isn’t just tasty, it’s colourful and aromatic, too.
Ingredients
- 1lb (½kg) of chicken breast, diced
- 2 tablespoons of natural yoghurt
- ½ cup of vegetable oil or ghee
- 1 Spanish onion
- 1½” ginger, finely grated
- 6 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 cup of tomato purée mixed with 1 cup of water
- Salt
- 1½ tsp of chilli powder
- 1 tsp of turmeric
For the spice mix:
- 6 whole dry red chillies
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1 heaped tsp of onion seeds
- 1 tsp of black mustard seeds
- 1″ stick of cinnamon
- 1½ tsp of fennel seeds
- 3 cloves
Method
- In a freezer bag, place the chicken, yoghurt, salt (to taste) and ½ tsp of turmeric. Agitate to mix the ingredients and leave to one side.
- Meanwhile, heat a dry frying pan over a medium heat and add the spice mix ingredients. Heat for 7-8 minutes, stirring and mixing constantly to get a good even dry roast. Allow to cool and grind, but not too finely.
- Heat oil in a large wok or saucepan and add onions. Caramelise until brown.
- Add grated ginger and minced garlic and stir fry for a further 5 minutes. Add the spice mix and half a teaspoon of turmeric and blend thoroughly.
- Add the chicken pieces and cook until white on all sides. Add the tomatoes, ½ tsp of turmeric, chilli powder and season with salt. Cook until the mixture begins to bubble.
- Add 2 cups of water, stir until boiling and then cover the pan. Cook on a slow boil until the chicken is cooked through.
- To increase the thickness of the sauce to your liking, remove the cover and cook until desired consistency is achieved. Ideally, the sauce should be about as thick as passata.
- Serve hot with turmeric rice and garlic and cheese naan.
This curry is not for the faint-hearted. Reduce the amount of chillies and reduce or omit the chilli powder if you don’t like the feeling of having a small incinerator in your mouth!
Garlic & Cheese Naan
Our local Indian restaurant is great – they do garlic and cheese naan for us even though they’re not on the menu. But when we’re cooking at home, the ready-made supermarket naan just don’t make the grade, so here’s a very simple recipe to make your own.
A perfect accompaniment to Andie’s Lamb Bhuna with turmeric rice!
Makes 8 small or 4 large
Ingredients
- 225g of self-raising flour
- 5g of fast-action bread yeast
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 2 tablespoons of natural or Greek yoghurt
- 1 tablespoon of melted butter plus extra for brushing
- 4 tablespoons of lukewarm milk
- 70g of grated cheese
- 2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed
Method
- Half-fill a large mixing bowl with boiling water and place a glass or cup containing the butter into it along with a cup containing the milk. This will do three things: melt the butter, warm the milk to lukewarm and heat the bowl.
- Meanwhile, lightly whisk the yoghurt. In a separate bowl, add the yeast and salt to the flour.
- Once the butter has melted and the milk is lukewarm, ditch the water and, while the bowl is still warm, combine all of the ingredients in it and mix to form a lump-free dough. Cover with oiled (or buttered) cling film and leave to prove for 25 minutes in a dark, warm place. Being a flatbread dough, it won’t rise in the same way as normal white bread dough.
- Mix the crushed garlic and cheese together.
- Turn the dough out on to a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes until smooth. Divide into 4 or 8 balls.
- With a rolling pin, roll each ball thinly, sprinkle half of each flattened dough ball with garlic and cheese, fold over and compress to encapsulate the filling.
- Glaze one side of the naan with melted (or softened) butter and heat under a hot, pre-heated grill until golden brown. Repeat for the other side.
You can vary the fillings and perhaps introduce some almonds or dried fruit.
Turmeric Rice
Turmeric is said to have numerous health benefits. And it makes rice a more interesting colour!
Makes 2-3 portions
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 cup of basmati rice
- 1 teaspoon of turmeric
- 1 ½ cups of boiled water
Method
- Rinse the rice three times in cold water.
- Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat on the smallest ring of your hob
- Add the rice and fry for a minute, stirring constantly, ensuring all of the grains are glistening with oil
- Add the turmeric and stir well
- Add the 1½ cups of boiled water, stir one last time and cover
- Boil on full heat for 6 minutes. Then reduce the heat to an absolute minimum for a further 6 minutes.
- After 12 minutes, fluff the rice with a fork and serve. If it’s still a bit wet, cover with a folded tea towel, replace the lid and leave to stand for a few minutes.
Add a sprig of fresh coriander to garnish
Andie’s Lamb Bhuna
Goes even better with turmeric rice (not pictured – in fact, this picture doesn’t do this wonderful dish justice!)
This is a moreish tender lamb curry that goes great with a few poppadums and some ice cold beer.
Ingredients
- 1kg lamb shoulder, diced (this will serve 8 – great for freezing)
- 2 tins of chopped tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter or ghee
- 2kg Spanish onions, blended
- 2 star anise
- 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
- ½ tube of tomato puree
- 2 dried chillies, finely chopped (2 tsp)
- 2 tablespoons of medium curry powder
- 2 dessert spoons of garam masala
- 2 tablespoons of sugar
- Dash of balsamic vinegar
Method
- Cube the lamb and toss in a bowl with the curry powder until coated.
- Heat the butter (or ghee) in a saucepan over a medium heat and add the onions. Cover and leave on a low heat, checking regularly until completely soft.
- Add the sugar and balsamic vinegar and fry until golden brown.
- When the onions are caramelised, add the lamb & curry powder and fry until browned.
- Add the chilli & garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Stir in the tinned tomatoes and the tomato puree and return to the boil.
- Add the star anise and reduce the heat to a very gentle simmer.
- Cook for a minimum of 1½ hours or until the lamb is tender.
- Stir in the garam masala and serve.
I buy a whole shoulder of lamb on the bone and dice it myself – that way you can ensure the meat is lean and freshly cut. This curry goes really well with turmeric rice.
Thelma’s Chicken Curry
A flavoursome curry that doesn’t require a visit to a specialist spice store.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken
- 2oz / 60g butter
- 2 tsps olive oil
- 2 large onions, chopped finely
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 2 tbsps curry powder
- 1 tbsp flour
- ¾pint / 425ml chicken stock
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cloves
- 1 tbsp tomato puree
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp chutney (mango, sweet or mang0 & lime)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tsp sugar
Method
- Roast, boil or microwave the chicken. Break apart into bite sized pieces and leave aside.
- Melt butter & oil in a pan over a meduim heat.
- Add onions & garlic.
- Stir in curry powder & flour.
- Add cloves, tomoato puree, ginger, cinnamon, chutney, lemon & sugar.
- Blend in the stock and bring to the boil.
- Reduce heat, season & simmer for 45 min – 1 hour.
- Remove the cloves and blend the mixture to a smooth consistency with a hand blender. Alternatively, the mixture can be strained.
- Add the cooked chicken, bring back to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Serve with rice.