Last night I wanted a Chicken Madras but had no base sauce to hand so I improvised with some basic ingredients to form a quick base sauce. This was delicious.
Ingredients
2-3 Chicken Breasts cut into cubes
3 tbsp oil
1 Onion finely chopped
1 tsp Ginger grated
1 tsp Garlic finely chopped
3 tomatoes cut into quarters
2 fresh green finger chillies finely sliced
2-3 tbsp plain yogurt
2 tsp red chilli powder (Deghi Mirch) (add more if you like it hotter)
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp tomato puree
Pinch Methi (Fenugreek Leaves)
Good squeeze of Lemon Juice
1 tsp turmeric
Whole Garam Masala:
3 green cardamoms slightly cracked
6 black peppercorns
4 cloves
1 tsp cumin seeds
Heat some oil in a pan and add the turmeric. Fry gently for 30 seconds add the chicken and brown the meat on all sides then remove to a dish.
Boil the onions in some water until soft. Remove from the water and drain.
Base sauce:
Blend the yogurt, tomatoes and cooked onions to form a sauce, add a little water if too thick.
Heat the oil in a pan and add the garlic, ginger and green chillis and fry gently for 1 minute or until the garlic and ginger take on a slightly golden colour but not brown.
Add the whole Garam masala - Cardamoms, Peppercorns, Cloves and Cumin seeds and fry gently for about 1 minute.
Add the Red chilli powder, Coriander powder and Tomato puree and fry gently for around 30 seconds
Add the base sauce and fry for 5-6 minutes, add water to the consistency you require.
Add the Methi and Lemon juice and the Chicken and cook until the Chicken is done.
Looks nice!
Do you leave the cardamoms and cloves in and eat them, or do you fish them out? For me there is nothing worse than munching down on a whole clove in Pilau rice.
Quote from: chriswg on September 16, 2009, 11:33 AM
Looks nice!
Do you leave the cardamoms and cloves in and eat them, or do you fish them out? For me there is nothing worse than munching down on a whole clove in Pilau rice.
Your absolutely right Chris, I fish them out, I hate that too, albeit I forgot one of the cardamoms last night and crunched on it. The kids said I had a face like a bulldog chewing a wasp!! :(
;D
Quote from: 976bar on September 16, 2009, 12:07 PM
The kids said I had a face like a bulldog chewing a wasp!! :(
Was that before or after you chewed on the cardamom? ;D
it funny how our tastes are so different - crunching on a cooked cardamom surrounded by a little curry is what dreams are made of for me.
976bar,
ps have u tried the yogurt before. i'm interested as i used for the 1st time in chriswg's curry in a hurry and thought i might just have something. i've not managed to use it myself since but have it on the list to try.
Quote from: JerryM on September 17, 2009, 08:24 AM
it funny how our tastes are so different - crunching on a cooked cardamom surrounded by a little curry is what dreams are made of for me.
976bar,
ps have u tried the yogurt before. i'm interested as i used for the 1st time in chriswg's curry in a hurry and thought i might just have something. i've not managed to use it myself since but have it on the list to try.
Hi Jerry,
I haven't used it in a Madras before but yes with other dishes. I found it added depth to the basic sauce I made. I'll certainly try it again and experiment.
P.S. So today is the big today for the Piri Piri eh? ;)
I just tried this recipe, not having the time to create all those sub-components. I am a veteran cook of 50 years worth of nice, wholesome home-made curries - BUT I have never yet cooked something which, if served to me in an Indian restaurant, would bring a knowing smile to my face. My home-made always tastes home-made by that standard.
OK, so I tried this recipe and it was excellent; very delicious and the spices and flavours were marked and well balanced. Smoky taste? No, sorry. Just a really, really good home-made curry. Thank you and I did enjoy it!
OK, so I tried this recipe and it was excellent; very delicious and the spices and flavours were marked and well balanced. Smoky taste? No, sorry. Just a really, really good home-made curry. Thank you and I did enjoy it!
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I'm glad you enjoyed it Spottymaldoon :)
How many servings from this recipe please? Im trying to scale it up for 6 people but i know that it isnt as simple as multiplying the ingredients by 6. Any help would be appreciated.
Quote from: ritchie on February 11, 2011, 08:42 PM
How many servings from this recipe please? Im trying to scale it up for 6 people but i know that it isnt as simple as multiplying the ingredients by 6. Any help would be appreciated.
I would go something along the lines of
5 chicken breasts
5-6 tbsp oil
2 onions
2 tsp ginger
2 tsp garlic
6 tomatoes
5 green chillis
6 tbsp plain yoghurt
4 tsp dehi mirch or kashmiri mirch
4 tsp coriander
1 tbsp tomato puree
2 tsp methi leaves
lemon juice to taste (you can always add more)
2 tsp turmeric
Just double the whole garam masala quantities