Indian Recipes and Indian Cooking Tips from Bhavani’s Kitchen

Ingredients

1 cup plain yogurt - room temp, stirred to a creamy consistency
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons oil
2 cups finely chopped onions
1 tablespoon ginger root peeled & minced
1 tablespoon garlic - minced
4 teaspoons green chilies preferably serranos
12 large chicken thighs skinned, rinsed and wiped dry
1 tablespoon coriander powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin powder
3/4 teaspoon turmeric
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
28 ounces tomatoes chopped liquid (1 can/box)
1/2 cup cilantro chopped
2 teaspoons salt or to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
1/4 cup cilantro chopped

Instructions

1. Stir yogurt and cornstarch together until smooth. Set aside.
2. In a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and saut until beginning to color, 6 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and saut onions until dark golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes longer.
3. Stir in ginger, garlic and chilies. saut for 2 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high. Add chicken and brown well, 6 to 8 minutes.
4. Reduce heat to medium. Sprinkle coriander, cumin, turmeric and cayenne pepper over top of chicken. Mix well and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Add tomatoes, yogurt mixture, 1/2 cup cilantro and salt. Mix well. Cover and bring to a boil.
6. Reduce heat to low and simmer until chicken is no longer pink inside, about 25 minutes.
7. Turn off heat. Stir in garam masala and 3 tbs. cilantro (or more cilantro to taste).
8. Garnish with remaining cilantro before serving. Serve with rice or any Indian bread.

Recipe by: Suneeta Vaswani, Fiesta Culinary School, Jan. 2005
www.suneetavaswani.com

Note - she uses a small amount of cooking oil and sometimes adds a tbs. of water instead of additional oil. Unlike original Indian cooking in which a lot of oil is used, she keeps it to a minimum.

Suneeta’s Quotes & Notes:

“You can’t make Curry in a Hurry”. Indians are part of the “Slow Foods Movement”. http://www.slowfood.com/

Add cornstarch to yogurt and bring it to room temperature before adding to any dish. This prevents curdling.

Powdered spices are very fragile. Use them right away and keep the heat down or you’ll lose the flavor.

“Never double the tumeric” when doubling a recipe. It will be too bitter.

Nutrition: per serving (1 thigh & sauce) Rice not included
Cal: 205 Cal from fat: 83
Total Fat 9g, Saturated fat: 2g, Chol: 64mg
Sodium: 630mg, Potassium: 498mg
Total Carbs: 11g, Fiber 1g
Protein: 20g

This dish freezes very well for up to 4 months. Reheat on low heat. Sprinkle with garam masala and cumin powder. Cover and let stand for 2 to 3 minutes to allow the aroma of the spices to infuse the curry. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with chopped cilantro before serving