This is the best chicken curry I’ve ever tasted and I’ve cooked it quite a few times now. It’s the curry you make when you want to impress people who won’t eat lamb. Murgh Makhani is the authentic version of the more familiar “chicken tikka masala”. By all accounts, the dish was created at the “Moti Mahal” restaurant in New Delhi as a way to use up the marinade left over in the trays used to prepare chicken tikka. I can’t promise that this recipe is as good as you’d get in the Moti Mahal, but it’s definitely worth trying.
The recipe is adapted slightly from the River Cottage Meat Book by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. I’ve changed how the chicken tikka is prepared and altered the spicing a little. The result is creamy, rich and spicy. Some plain basmati rice is the only accompaniment you’ll need for this.
Main Ingredients
- 6 large, free-range chicken breasts
- 125g butter
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tbsp honey
- 150ml double cream
- 1 tbsp fenugreek leaves
- juice of ½ lemon
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
Tikka Marinade Ingredients
- 1 tsp salt
- juice of ½ lemon
- 2 tsp of the following: chilli powder, sweet paprika
- 2 tbsp plain yoghurt
- 2 tbsp garam masala
- 2 tsp of the following: ground coriander, ground fenugreek
- 2 tsp mixed spice (or 1 tsp each of ground cinnamon and ground ginger)
- 2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp groundnut/sunflower oil
Tomato Gravy Ingredients
- 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 5 cloves
- 1 tsp salt
- 175ml water
Method
- The first step is to marinade the chicken. Mix the salt, chilli powder and paprika with the lemon juice in a large bowl and add the chicken breasts. cover and leave to marinade for 30 minutes. (If using “bone-in” chicken, make some slashes before adding to the marinade.)
- Mix the remaining marinade ingredients and coat the chicken breasts. Cover tightly with cling film and leave overnight.
- Put all of the ingredients for the tomato sauce in a saucepan and bring up to a gentle simmer. Leave to simmer for 20 minutes before straining to remove the whole spices. Cover and set aside.
- Transfer the chicken pieces, along with it’s marinade, to a roasting tray. Cover the tray with foil and roast in the oven at 220°C for 10 minutes. Lower the heat to 200°C and leave for a further 20 minutes.
- Now it’s time to complete the dish by making the makhani sauce. Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the ground cumin. Sizzle gently for a minute before adding the tomato sauce and simmering for 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients. simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cooked chicken along with it’s sauce/marinade. Simmer until the chicken is warmed through and.
Serves 6.
Notes
- Difference between this version and that contained in the River Cottage Meat Book - Hugh does his marinade in one single step. I prefer to do a two-step (with chilli and lime juice first) because it’s always worked for me and makes the chicken really succulent, even chicken breast fillets. I also use fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi) instead of ground fenugreek as it looks good in the finished dish. Hugh also strains his tomato sauce to give a smoother result but I like a bit more texture in the sauce.
“The Big 8 - The only curry recipes you’ll ever need!” - Part 7/8
Saag makes a really nice change from tomato-based curries, whether in a restaurant or cooking at home. The word “saag” typically refers to “greens” and not just spinach. In India, it would often comprise a mixture of spinach, mustard greens and fresh fenugreek leaves. Given the lack of availability of mustard greens and fresh fenugreek in Dublin, this interpretation uses spinach along with dried fenugreek (kasoori methi) for flavour.
As with most curry gravies, it is best to make the sauce in advance and allow it to cool. Then we can add our chicken and finish the sauce with the spinach. Simples.
Ingredients
- 6 free-range chicken breast fillets (or use bone-in chicken thighs)
- 2-3 tbsp sunflower/groundnut oil
- 500g onions, chopped (about 3 large onions)
- 10 cloves garlic, peeled
- 50g root ginger, peeled and chopped roughly (about the size of a golf ball)
- 2 tsp of each of the following: ground cumin, red chilli flakes, ground coriander, garam masala
- 1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 3 cloves
- 3 green cardamoms, lightly crushed
- 4 large tomatoes, chopped
- 500ml chicken stock
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 300g baby spinach leaves (or use regular spinach, stalks removed)
- handful of fresh coriander leaves, chopped
- natural yoghurt, to serve
Method
- Combine the ground spices listed above and set aside. This is our “masala”.
- Place a deep cast-iron casserole (or large saucepan) on the hob and heat the oil. Add the onions and cook them gently for around 30 minutes until soft and light brown in colour.
- In the meantime, blitz the garlic, root ginger and tomatoes in a blender until smooth. Add a little water to loosen if necessary. Remove the browned onions from the casserole using a slotted spoon and add to the blender. Blend again until very smooth.
- Put the casserole back on the heat and add the onion/tomato mixture to the casserole. Then add the ground spice masala, chicken stock and salt. Stir to combine and bring up to a gentle simmer. Reduce the heat and simmer very gently for about 45 mins.
- The sauce is now done. At this point it is best to leave the sauce to cool for a few hours (or preferably overnight). This really develops the flavour of the gravy and allows the spices and onions to mellow. You can skip this step however - it will still taste great.
- Bring the gravy back up to a gentlest simmer and add the cubed chicken. Cook for about 20 minutes (45 minutes if you’re using chicken thighs. Just remember to verify the chicken is cooked before eating.)
- Rinse the spinach in cold water and add two thirds of it to another saucepan. Cover with a lid and cook over a high heat for a minute or two until the spinach is wilted. Transfer the spinach to a clean blender and puree.
- Transfer the puree to the curry and add the rest of the spinach leaves. Cook for a minute and stir through a handful of chopped fresh coriander. Drizzle over some natural yoghurt before serving. This goes really well with chapattis and plain basmati rice.
Serves 6.
Another Indian snack/starter, which I’m a little obsessed with of late. Chunks of chicken are marinated in yoghurt and spices, then roasted quickly in a hot oven. Not as good as those produced by the tandoor, but they taste great. Just like the Seekh Kebab, you could add some red food colouring for that authentic Indian restaurant vibe but it’s not necessary.
Ingredients
- 2 large free-range chicken fillets
- 8 tbsp natural yoghurt
- ½ tsp sea salt
- juice of ½ lemon
- 1 tsp of the following: ground cumin, ground coriander, turmeric, paprika
- 2 tsp garam masala
- ½ chilli powder
- 2 red onions
Method
- Cut the chicken into large pieces, about the size of a walnut, and place in a mixing bowl.
- Add the yoghurt, lemon juice, salt and ground spices and mix well. Cut the red onions into quarters and add to the chicken. Mix again and leave to marinate for an hour.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C. Thread the chicken and onion pieces onto skewers. If you’re using wooden skewers, remember to soak them in water for an hour first.
- Place the skewers on a grill pan and roast for about 15 mins. You can also use a grill rack on a baking sheet.
- I like to serve these on naan bread with mango chutney and yoghurt.
Serves 2.
This is my new Christmas stuffing recipe, which I adapted from a recipe in GoodFood magazine. Mix sausage meat, herbs, breadcrumbs and chopped chestnuts, then form into patties. Wrap the patties in bacon and roast alongside your spuds. I like this method because the turkey/chicken does not take as long to cook, resulting in moister meat.
Ingredients
- 200g good-quality sausage meat
- 100g white breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp sage, finely chopped
- 1 tsp parsley, finely chopped
- ½ tsp rosemary, finely chopped
- 50g chestnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 egg
- 1 apple
- salt & pepper
- 8 slices streaky bacon
- 8 sage leaves
Method
- In a mixing bowl, combine the sausagemeat, breadcrumbs, apple, herbs, chestnuts and egg.
- Remove the core and skin from the apple and grate into the mixing bowl.
- Season with black pepper and a little salt (remember that your sausagemeat will already be well seasoned). Mix well with your hands.
- Form into 8 patties and wrap each patty with a slice of streaky bacon, tucking a sage leaf under the bacon.
- Place on a baking sheet (or alongside your roast potatoes) and roast at 180°C for 45 minutes.
Serves 8.
