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Ingredients
4 Chicken breast -halves,
boned
1/2 c Safflower oil
1/4 c Ghee
6 md Yellow onions
3 Cloves garlic, fresh
1 1/2 t Ginger (use fresh -ginger if you can -find it)
20 Cloves, whole
12 Green cardamom seeds, -whole, cracked -(or less -- or use 2 t -of ground
cardamom)
5 Bay leaves
1 t Salt
1 1/2 t Coriander (ground)
1/2 t Cayenne pepper -(or more to taste)
8 oz Yogurt, plain
1/2 c Water 1/2 c Milk
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Method
Cut the chicken breasts into
bite-size pieces and set aside. Peel the onions and chop them fine. You
should have about 3 cups of onion. Mince the garlic and add to the bowl
of chopped onions. In a big frypan that has a lid, heat the butter and
oil, then saute the onions and garlic for about 10 minutes, until the
first hint of browning. Use "medium-high" heat. Crack the cardamom seeds
between your fingers, just to get the shell open. Add them to the pan.
Add the ginger, cloves, bay leaves and salt. Saute until the onions are
nice and brown, about 5 more minutes. Mix the coriander and red pepper
with the yogurt. Add the yogurt to the frypan, stirring as you pour, slowly
enough that the onion doesn't stop bubbling. It could take several minutes
to do this, depending on the diameter of your frypan. When the last of
the yogurt dries up, add the chicken pieces and brown them. Add 1/2 cup
water, reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in the milk and
turn off the heat. It needs to sit a few minutes to let the flavors blend.
The longer you let it sit after cooking, the better it will taste (up
to several hours). While the chicken is sitting, cook some rice. I make
saffron rice to go with this dish. Fish out the bay leaves and as many
of the whole cloves as you can find, before serving. Americans don't seem
to like to eat whole cloves in their food. Check to make sure it is moist
enough (it should have the consistency of applesauce). Reheat over low
heat. Serve. Serves 4.
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