Murgh Masala, Chicken Masala

When Tummy suggested Indian for lunch I said yes right away. As I wanted something light and fresh rather than the more intensely spiced variety, this dish that I tried making once a while back came to mind.

Murgh masala or chicken masala is is a refreshing change from those Indian restaurant staples such as butter chicken or tikka masala. It is a classy yet complex dish but fortunately it is dead easy to prepare, just make sure you serve it with plenty of steamed basmati rice or roti on the side.

I also made a couple of simple side dishes to accompany this new favourite of ours, do come back later in the week to find out what they are! Happy cooking and see you soon!

recipe adapted from The Food Of India
serves 4 as part of an Indian meal
you'll need;
1.5 kg of skinless chicken thighs
2 tsp of cumin powder
2 tsp of coriander powder
1.5 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
2 onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
5 cm knob of ginger, roughly chopped
2 very ripe tomatoes, chopped
3 tbs of ghee
5 cloves
8 cardamon pods
2 sprigs of curry leaves
5 cm piece of cinnamon stick
150 ml of thick natural yoghurt

Mix cumin, coriander, garam masala and turmeric in a bowl and rub it onto the chicken thighs.

Put half of the onion with the garlic, ginger and tomatoes in a food processor and blend till smooth.

Aromatics for the dish.

In a large pot, saute the remaining onion with ghee, add in the cloves, cardamom, cinnamon and curry leaves and fry until the onion is golden brown.

Add the tomato and onion paste and stir for 5 minutes, season to taste with some good sea salt.

Add the spiced chicken, stir in the yoghurt and bring to the boil.

Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 40 minutes or until the oil separates from the sauce. Stirring from time to time to prevent chicken from sticking to the pot. If the sauce is too watery, remove the chicken from the pot and simmer until the sauce thicken, return chicken to the sauce. Check for seasonings.

Serve as part of an Indian meal.