One of my absolute favorite comfort foods growing up was chicken curry.
This is something my dad picked up when he was in the army, from one of his Caribbean buddies. And my parents adapted it and this was something we had pretty often.
Obviously this was one of the first things I had to learn how to make when moving out as an adult. I had helped out in the kitchen and had some ideas of how my parents did it. But as is customary for me, I also made my own tweaks.
I have been making this chicken curry for well over 20 years at this point. It is a pantry meal. And it is not with Indian techniques either. It is also a childhood recipe that barely needed any changes to be more Mediterranean friendly. I made one adaption out of laziness, and that was really the only non Mediterranean thing – I eliminated using a roux because I found things thicken on their own.
I have 4 takes:
1. Basic
2. With a little bit coconut milk
3. With canned chickpeas
4. With red lentils (like today, and I later found out is sometimes available at restaurants)
Here is my process, it is flexible. I served with basmati rice, but this is especially awesome with naan.
Ingredients (estimated, I don’t measure):
– 1-1.5 pounds of chicken (boneless thighs are great here)
– 1/2 can of whole peeled tomatoes (feel free to to sub any other plain canned tomatoes, but sauce is wrong. You want a little texture
– 1-1.5 cups of diced onion
– ~2 tablespoons of curry powder
– Garam masala for sprinkling
– Garlic in any form – growing up my mom used garlic juice. I use a mix of powder and frozen paste or I chop based on laziness factor
– Ginger – growing up my mom used powder. Similarly to the garlic I use a mix of powder and frozen cubes or chop if I have some
– However many fresh chilies or cayenne or other plain ground chili you feel like adding. Dry Thai chilies are good too. I use any and all combos
– Oil – avocado, ghee, coconut, or mustard are best. Olive is fine.
– 1/2 cup or red lentils (you can play around as needed)
– Salt to taste
- chop your onions and any fresh ingredients, set aside. Chilies can go with onions. Keep the garlic and ginger separate from onions
- Salt and sprinkle garam masala on your chicken or just use salt and pepper, both versions are delicious
- Heat a pan over medium low heat and add oil when it is hot
- Give your chicken a sear, it doesn’t need to be perfect. You just want to build your flavor base. Take out of the pan and set aside
- Turn down the heat and add onions, dry spices, and fresh chilies. You may need a little water to get the fond. Cook the onions till they are soft and things look pasty
- Add the garlic and onion in fresh or frozen forms. Cook for a minute or two so they are fragrant and incorporate.
- Add the tomatoes. If they are whole peeled, you’ll wanna mash any chunks.
- Cook for a few minutes till all that stuff looks incorporated into a sauce.
- Add the chicken back and enough water to braise with a low simmer.
- Braise to desired doneness. If adding red lentils, and you like tender chicken, throw the lentils in after about 40 minutes. They will take about 20-30 to soften. If you want the creamy factor – added it when you have 10 or so minutes left.
- You are done. Salt to taste and serve with your starch and veggie side. Cilantro and lime as garnishes are nice but not required. Make a yogurt raita too if that’s your jam.
You are done and this freezes well.
Notice this recipe generally has no cream or yogurt. It is not heavy and the gravy is basically tomatoes, onions and spices. All med friendly. 🙂
Even though there is no tadka and other traditional India techniques, I promise it is still packed with flavor by using a good flavor building and layering process.
Olalieberries and nectarine for dessert. And a lime-y coleslaw for the veggie course.
by PlantedinCA