The Home Made Indian Chicken Curry: Recipe And More

• 4 tea spoons,any vegetable oil or olive oil. If you want to use less oil,add 2 big spoons of curd.
• 1 kilo or 2 pounds of chicken with bones cut into medium sized pieces, this will serve 4-5 people. Use 500 grams or 1 pound of chicken to cook for 2-3 people.
• 1 teaspoon turmeric power
• 1 tea spoon red chilli paper or paprika
• 1 tea spoon cumin powder
• 1 tea spoon coriander powder
• 2-3 cardamom pods
• 2 medium sized pieces of cinnamon stick
• 2-3 cloves
• 1 tea spoon garam masala powder (available in any departmental store). Don't bother if you don't have this. Simply use cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Use a mortar and pestle to make an uneven mixture. It need not be a fine powder. If you don't have a mortar and pestle at home, use a rolling pin.
• 1 tea spoon black soya sauce . Don't bother if you don't have it.
• 1 big spoon of curd or 3 tea spoons of curd.

1. Heat the oil in a pan or pressure cooker.
2. Add the onion paste and fry till golden brown.
3. Add in the tomato paste. Stir.
4. Once the raw smell of the tomatoes is gone, add in the ginger garlic paste. Give it a good stir.
5. Add in the chicken. Mix it all in.
6. Add in the dry spices, i.e. the turmeric powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves.
7. Mix, mix, mix.
8. Add a tablespoon of soya sauce
9. Add a big dollop of curd.
10. Add in the potatoes.
11. Add a (coffee) mug of water.
12. Add salt.
13. Cover pressure cooker and cook for 10 minutes on a low flame. Or till you hear the 1st whistle. If you don't have a pressure cooker, cook in a big pan. Cover and cook for 15 minutes on a low flame.
14. Remove from the cooker or pan. Garnish with chopped coriander or mint.
15. Serve.You can serve this chicken curry with boiled white or brown rice.
16. For a healthy meal, make a quick salad of cucumber, onion and tomatoes with a sprinkle of lime, salt and pepper.

• Don't spend too much time on cutting your veggies. Give it a rough, uneven chop and put it in the mixer.
• To make the ginger garlic paste at home, take 8-10 cloves of garlic and a medium sized piece (4 centimeters) of ginger.
• If you're making the chicken curry for 2 people, use 1 onion, 1 tomato, 1 and a half tea spoons of ginger garlic paste. Add 1 potato.
• Dry spices for 2-3 people: 1 tea spoon of cumin powder, coriander powder, half a tea spoon of chilli powder and turmeric powder.
• 2 cardamom pods, 1 cinnamon and 2 cloves.
• Potatoes: Don't dice into small pieces if you're cooking in a pressure cooker. You can even peel 2 whole potatoes and directly add it to the chicken curry.

• Chicken is a great source of low fat protein that builds muscles and aids weight loss.
• It alleviates depression due to the presence of amino acid called tryptophan.
• It helps you to sleep better and is a mood booster.
• It keeps your bones healthy by fighting against bone diseases like osteoporosis and arthritis.
• It's a good source of selenium, zinc, niacin, Vitamin E, betacarotene, and Vitamins B6 and B12.
• It protects your heart.
• It's rich in phosphorus which keeps your teeth and bones healthy. And helps your kidney, liver and central nervous system to function.
• It's a good source of selenium which improves your metabolism and keeps you active and helps you to lose weight.
• Choose skinless, organic chicken for a healthy and nutritious meal.

Potato

• Contains Vitamin C, B6, Niacin, folate, minerals - copper, manganese, iron, potassium, and is rich in dietary fiber and carbohydrate.
• Aids digestion, protects against cancer, scurvy, heart diseases, kidney stones and rheumatism.
• Helps in weight reduction and weight gain depending on how much and how you consume it.

Tomato

• Rich in Vitamins A and C, K, folic acid and potassium.
• Combats prostrate and colorectal cancer.
• Potassium in tomatoes keeps blood pressure at the right level and the heart healthy.
• It fights diabetes and prevents skin damage.

Onion

• Contains phenolics and flavonoids which improves immunity, reduces inflammation, heals infection, produces good cholesterol(HDL) and prevents cancer.

Ginger

• Prevents colon inflammation, muscle pain, cancer, asthma, hypertension, loss of appetite, headache, morning sickness, menstural pain and arthritis.
• Also used in treating nausea and vomiting.

Garlic

• Contains Vitamin B6 which improves immunity, iodine which prevents hyperthyroid conditions, keeps heart healthy, prevents cancer, regulates blood sugar.
• Garlic is used to treat fungal and bacterial infections.

There is something about spices and meat. I think it's about the interplay of colors, flavors and aroma. And it's about memories and images flashing in your mind. The memory of rushing back from school and finding your grandmother busy in the kitchen cooking up a treat for you. And knowing that the treat will blow your mind away.

I can't possibly separate the making of chicken curry from those happy memories of my childhood. And that's why I make it time and again. To relive those moments, when I rushed back to my grandmother and held her hand, while savoring a curry made with care and compassion.