Punjabi chicken curry
This delicious punjabi chicken curry is not difficult to make, so don’t be alarmed by the number of spices needed to get maximum flavor out of this dish.
Punjabi chicken curry
This delicious punjabi chicken curry is by Anjum Anand from her book New Indian. I was first pointed to Anjum by a blogger friend who is not blogging anymore, so can’t give you her details, but she was fabulous in her Indian recipes. I met Anjum in person during a blogger conference ages ago and have been a fan of her recipes ever since.
This punjabi chicken curry is one of my favorites! The first time I made it I mistakenly used old spices. That reduces the flavor of this dish by at least 50% so make sure you use fresh and – preferably – whole spices. It takes a bit more time to make but it is so worth it!
Making the punjabi chicken curry
The ingredients and the instructions are taken straight from the book. I have to say that I went for the easy option for the chicken. I think Anjum used whole chicken legs, but I just love the easy of using chicken thighs. So that’s what I used and that’s what you’ll see in the recipe below.
Don’t be put of by the number of ingredients. It is worth it. Yes, you do have to have all those spices and that can be a bit of a pain, I admit. But there is no way around it, if you want to make an authenthic Indian recipe like this Punjabi chicken curry. So either pick another easy curry or get yourself the necessary spices!
Curry fan?
If you want you check some of my other easy curry recipes below
Punjabi chicken curry
Ingredients
- 5 cm fresh ginger peeled and cut into large pieces
- 10 cloves garlic peeled
- 4 pcs cardamom pods
- 4 cloves
- 1 pcs cinnamon stick
- 5 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 medium onion peeled and chopped
- 2 green chilis whole but pricked with the tip of a knife
- 800 g chicken thigh skinned and deboned
- 5 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp pure red chili powder
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 tsp garam masala
- salt to taste
- 3 medium tomatoes cut into small wedges
- large handful of fresh cilantro chopped
How to make the punjabi chicken curry
- Using a blender, make a fine paste of the ginger and garlic with a little water, set aside.
- Place the brown cardamom pods in a mortar, give them a bash with the pestle, then remove the husks to leave only the seeds.
- Heat the oil in a large nonstick frying pan. Add the bayleaf, onion and spices and cook until brown, around 8-10 minutes.
- Add the green chilies and ginger and garlic paste and cook until just golden, around 2-4 minutes.
- Add the chicken and brown gently over medium heat. Stir in the spices and salt and give the pan a good stir. Add the tomatoes and enough water to come 1 inch up the pan. Bring to the boil, then cover and cook over low heat for 15 minutes.
- Uncover the pan, increase the heat to high and boil to brown the masala. This will add a lot of depth to the flavor. Toss and turn the chicken in the reducing paste. Once the water has reduced, lower the heat and continue for another few minutes – the masala should release some droplets of oil. Then add enough hot water to the pan to come more than halfway up the chicken pieces, bring to the boil, stir in the fresh cilantro and serve.
Nutrition Information per portion
Disclaimer
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
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Hi
I am Punjabi and also a very good cook. I make this chicken curry all the time and for some stupid reason decided to make Anjums version. I found 1 onion wasn’t sufficient for this amount for the amount of chicken specified. Also the ground cardamom seeds and cinnamon were completely over powering. In fact the curry is too hot as a result and the kids wouldn’t eat it as it tasted different. I think Anjum should leave Punjabi recipes to the Punjabis !!