Madhur Jaffrey Chicken Madras Recipes

CHICKEN MADRAS

Steps:

• Blitz 1 quartered onion, 2 garlic cloves, a thumb-sized chunk of ginger and ½ red chilli together in a food processor until it becomes a coarse paste.
• Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a large saucepan and add the paste, fry for 5 mins, until softened. If it starts to stick to the pan at all, add a splash of water.
• Tip in ½ tsp turmeric, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander and 1-2 tsp hot chilli powder and stir well, cook for a couple of mins to toast them a bit, then add 4 chicken breasts, cut into chunks. Stir and make sure everything is covered in the spice mix.
• Cook until the chicken begins to turn pale, adding a small splash of water if it sticks to the base of the pan at all.
• Pour in 400g can chopped tomatoes, along with a big pinch of salt, cover and cook on a low heat for 30 mins, until the chicken is tender.
• Stir through small pack of coriander and serve with rice, naan and a big dollop of mango chutney.

LAMB, PORK OR BEEF MADRAS

Steps:

• Put the coriander seeds, peppercorns, fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds, cloves and chillies into a small, cast-iron frying pan and set it over medium heat. Stir the spices over the heat until they are a shade darker and give off a roasted aroma. Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool, then grind in a clean spice grinder or coffee grinder. Pour the oil into a wide, non-stick pan, and set it over medium-high heat.When the oil is hot, add the onions and cook, stirring, until they turn brown at the edges. Add the ginger, garlic and green chillies and stir-fry for 20 seconds. Add the meat and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, ground roasted spices, salt and coconut milk and bring to the boil. Cover the pan, turn the heat to low and simmer gently for 1 hour or until the meat is tender. Uncover the pan and boil away a lot of the liquid, until a thick sauce clings to the meat. Garnish with finely chopped coriander to serve. If you want to use pork, buy shoulder meat and cook it exactly like lamb. If you prefer beef, use good-quality stewing beef, add a little extra water and then cook it for 1½ hours or until tender.