Special Chicken Curry (Desi Murgh Curry) Recipe

"In the fifties and sixties, if you were invited to dinner and served this recipe (curry), it would show that your hosts had spared no expense or effort in your honor, and you would have been duly thankful. Thus was the status of a “Desi Murgh” curry, when chickens were hard to obtain, quite expensive, and difficult to cook. Farmed chicken changed all this and turned a glorious curry into an ordinary one. To get the real taste of the original, you have to use a desi murgh—a young, male, organic pastureraised chicken. Serve with mango pickle (p150) and nans or boiled or pulao rice."

Serves: 4
Cooking time: 45 min

 Ingredients:

1/4 cup sunflower oil

2 large onions, finely sliced
2 tsp garlic paste
2 tsp ginger paste
4 tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
2 oz (50 g) plain Greek-style yogurt
11/2 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp ground coriander
3 large black cardamom pods
6 cloves
1 bay leaf
salt to taste
1 pasture-raised organic chicken, about 23/4 lb
(1.2 kg), cut into 8 pieces, skinned if preferred
5–6 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the onions, and cook until dark golden brown. Remove the
onions with a slotted spoon. Allow to cool, then chop them finely in a food processor. Set aside.
2. Add the garlic and ginger pastes to the hot oil in the saucepan and stir for a few minutes. Add the
tomatoes and stir in well, then stir in the yogurt. Cook for 5–6 minutes. Add the browned onion
paste and stir to mix, then add all the spices, the bay leaf, and salt to taste. Cook, stirring, until the
oil separates out.
3. Put the chicken pieces in the pan and spoon the spice mixture over them. Add 2 cups water. Put
the lid on the pan and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 40–50 minutes or until the
chicken is cooked through and tender. Add more water if needed.
4. Remove the lid and continue cooking for 10 minutes or until the oil in the sauce separates out. Stir
in 1/4 cup of the chopped cilantro. Garnish with the remaining chopped cilantro and serve.

NOTE: The curry can be made in advance and reheated in the pan over low heat, or in a microwave.