ZAFFRANI MURGH KORMA

RECIPE 09

A chicken dish rich to the point of decadence, special enough to be a favourite at wedding banquets and festive occasions. Serves: 4 Preparation time: 4 hours Cooking time: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

1 kg chicken on the bone, skinned 1 cup full fat yoghurt 1 tbsp toasted cumin powder 2 tbsp ground coriander seeds 1 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder 1 tsp red chilli powder 1 tsp salt 8 green cardamom pods 8 cloves 2 tbsp ginger and garlic paste (homemade is best) 50 g ghee (or use oil) 1 red onion Cooking oil for frying the onion ¼ tsp ground mace and nutmeg (in a 50:50 ratio) ½ tsp fennel powder 7−8 strands saffron soaked in 1 tbsp warm milk 2 tbsp ground almonds 1 tbsp almond flakes

METHOD

Mix the yoghurt with the ginger/garlic, salt and all the powdered spices except the mace, fennel and nutmeg. Marinate the chicken in this for at least four hours. Thinly slice the onion and fry it in hot oil. When it turns a light reddish brown, transfer to a plate to cool. Heat the ghee (or oil if using). Fry the whole spices for a couple of minutes on a medium heat. Add the marinated chicken and half a cup of water. Cook on a low heat with the lid on for half an hour, stirring occasionally. You should see the red coloured fat separating from the sauce. Now crush the fried onions, by hand if they are crisp enough, in a blender if not, and add them to the cooking chicken, together with the mace, nutmeg, fennel, ground almonds and saffron. Stir and cook until the chicken is completely tender. Allow to stand for half an hour, sprinkling the almond flakes over the chicken before serving.