1. De-bone chicken thighs and cut into thin strips.
2. Blend the garlic and ginger to a paste, add fresh lemon juice with a pinch of salt.
3. Marinate the chicken in the garlic and ginger paste for 15 minutes and add the yoghurt mixed with chilli powder and leave for a minimum of five hours or preferably overnight.
4. Place the chicken under a medium-hot grill for 12 minutes, do not turn. Remove from the grill and leave to cool and then chop into bite-sized pieces and put in the fridge.
To make the sauce:
5. In a big saucepan add the cinnamon sticks/ bark, cardamom pods, cloves, root ginger (inch finely chopped) green chillies and bay leaves and cook in vegetable oil for 3-4 minutes.
6. Then add the tomatoes and mix well into spices before adding 100 mls water (half way up tomatoes) with a pinch of salt. Put the lid on and leave to simmer for 35 minutes on a low heat.
7. Take out whole spices and blend the sauce. Strain the liquid through a sieve and then add back into the pan and bring to the boil.
8. Blend some cashew nuts into some water to make a paste and then add this along with the tomato puree and honey into the sauce and leave for 3 minutes. Add the fenugreek leaves, a pinch of salt and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
9. Add the fenugreek leaves, double cream, butter and a pinch of salt and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
10. Roughly chop the cashew nuts, fry in a tablespoon of veg oil. Add the cooked chicken and fry for 3-4 minutes. Add the sauce to the chicken and cashew nuts.
11. Finish with a little cream and a squeeze of lime.
To make the pilau rice:
12. In a frying pan add the dry spices with some vegetable oil and cook for 2 minutes (cumin seeds, turmeric, cinnamon bark, cloves and cardamom).
13. Pour boiling water over the saffron and leave to one side to infuse.
14. Add the cashew nuts to the frying pan and cook for 2 minutes. Then add the shallots and cook for two minutes. Finally add the sultanas.
15. Add the rice into the frying pan and coat in the spices and oil before covering in water and bringing to the boil. Once bubbling place a lid on the pan and leave to simmer for 12 minutes.
16. In the meantime fry off the onion.
17. Garnish the rice with the fried onions and freshly chopped parsley and chives.
This recipe looks awesome, thanks for sharing! If you ever want to make it a lot quicker but still want that awesome flavour with all natural ingredients, why not try my hand blended Butter Chicken Spice Mix, it really does taste like authentic Indian Butter Chicken, made in just 20mins! Check it out at http://www.myspicemix.co.uk – Free shipping anywhere in the world!
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This recipe looks awesome, thanks for sharing! If you ever want to make it a lot quicker but still want that awesome flavour with all natural ingredients, why not try my hand blended Butter Chicken Spice Mix, it really does taste like authentic Indian Butter Chicken, made in just 20mins! Check it out at http://www.myspicemix.co.uk – Free shipping anywhere in the world!
by Foodbuff on Thu Aug 19 2010 reply to this comment