chicken jalfrezi

One of the fun things about blogging is the great recipes. Last week Alaine posted a delicious looking chicken jalfrezi on her blog Eclectique. I just just had to give it a whirl. She was right, it was wonderful; a whole bouquet of bright flavors. It was such a big hit at the manor, it's going to be a regular dish. Thanks, Alaine!

I was unfamiliar with the term "jalfrezi", so of course I had to do a bit of poking around. Jalfrezi is a type of Indian curry in which marinated piece of meat or vegetables are fried in oil and spices to make a dry, thick sauce. It's cooked with green chilies, and can range in heat from a medium dish, to a very hot one. Typically those eating jalfrezi cool it down by combining it with cream.

From the times of the Mughals, when it was created as a way of using leftover meat, the chilies helped disguise any disagreeable taste. Okay, now that's really appetizing. The name comes indirectly from Bengali "jhal", meaning spicy food and Urdu "parhezi" meaning suitable for a diet.

6 chicken thighs marinated in:

2 inch piece ginger, peeled and finely grated - I used 2 heaped tsp minced

3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and grated - or 2 heaped tsp minced

½ tsp turmeric

1 tsp garam masala

vegetables:

2 med onions, peeled and thickly sliced or chopped

2 green peppers, de-seeded and sliced or cubed

1-2 green chillies, chopped (optional)

2 large tomatoes cut into wedges

2 tbsp oil or ghee

salt to taste

curry sauce:

2 tbsp ghee or oil

½ tsp chili powder, adjust to taste

2 tbsp tomato paste

optional: You can add a couple of tablespoons of thick, natural yogurt or heavy cream at the last. (I did.)

Mix ginger, garlic, turmeric, garam masala and salt together. Coat chicken with this mix and allow to marinate for 2-3 hours.

Heat oil or ghee in a large frying pan, wok or kadhai. Add sliced onions, green chillies, green peppers and salt, fry for 10 minutes. Add tomato wedges, stir fry until onions become translucent and green peppers and tomatoes are half cooked, approximately 10 minutes. Lift out with a slotted spoon and keep aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil or ghee in pan, add marinated, cut up chicken and stir-fry for 5 minutes on high. Add chilli powder and tomato puree and simmer on low heat, until chicken is cooked. Stir-fry until excess sauce is evaporated and chicken looks well fried. Add fried vegetables, prepared earlier and stir-fry for a few minutes, until heated through.

Stir in yogurt/cream here, if used. Adjust seasoning, turn heat off, sprinkle with coriander leaves.

Note: I could not find garam masala anywhere in my neck of the woods, but found a great substitute online:

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp crumbled bay leaves

1/8 tsp ground cloves

Serves: 4 regular sized portions or 3 piggy sized ones.