Nothing beats a good old curry. Being married to a Brit, curry is on the menu in our house at least once a week, sometimes twice. As James explains to me curry has long since replaced fish-n-chips as the British national dish and I can’t tell you how pleased I am about that! If I had to eat fish-n-chips once a week I think I’d be 20 pounds heavier and popping Lipitor with my morning coffee.
But curry? Bring it on! Sometimes we do Thai, sometimes Indian, sometimes meat, sometimes veggie. There are so many different curries to be enjoyed we could easily do months without a repeat. You can’t say that about fish-n-chips!
If you enjoy curry as much as we do but are in need of something different this recipe is a nice way to mix it up. The chicken and veg are skewered and then slowly simmered in a curry sauce to coat the meat. The sauce, which can be spooned over or dipped into is full of fragrant spices – cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, turmeric and cayenne for the kick of heat. It is a nice dish for casual entertaining, a creative way to add curry to a buffet or just a yummy Thursday night dinner in front of the telly. (As I mentioned, I’m married to a Brit…)
I like to serve this dish with Mango Chutney (recipe below) and Lemon, Coconut Rice – a recipe I promise to share soon!
- 1½ lbs (675g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 red pepper, chopped into large cubes
- 1 red onion, chopped into large cubes
- 3 Tablespoons ghee, clarified butter or coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon whole cloves
- 1 teaspoon green cardamom pods
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 medium onions, finely chopped
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 Tablespoon minced ginger
- 1-2 teaspoons cayenne chili powder (depending on how spicy you like)
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 10 oz./300g natural greek yogurt
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- Salt
Mango Chutney: - 1 lb 2 oz/500g diced fresh mango
- 4 oz/115g sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon finely chopped ginger
- ½ teaspoon red chile flakes
- 2 green cardamom pods
- 2 cloves
- 7 oz/200ml water
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and thread bamboo skewers with chicken, peppers and red onion, making sure not to have the chunks of onion too thick or else they will not cook through. Set aside.
- Heat the ghee, butter or oil in a large saucepan until hot. Add the cloves, cardamom, cinnamon sticks and bay leaves until they sputter a bit in the oil, about 3o seconds.
- Add the onions and sauté until soft and starting to go golden, about 7 minutes.
- Add the garlic and ginger and sauté until just fragrant - about 20 seconds and then immediately add the cayenne, turmeric, and yogurt and heat until the yogurt melts and the oil separates. Gently simmer a couple minutes. Add the sugar and stir well to combine and season the sauce to taste with salt.
- Add the skewers to the curry sauce and cook them in the sauce, keeping it at a gentle simmer until the skewers are fully cooked. This will take about 10-15 minutes during which you need to be regularly turning the skewers to ensure they all cook evenly.
- Remove the skewers from the pan and place on a platter. You can add a bit more yogurt or a little water to the sauce left in the pan to thin it a bit. Pour the sauce into a small bowl and serve alongside the skewers.
For the Mango Chutney: - Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and gently cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes.
- Serve aside the curried skewers.
Leave A Comment