Hot Chicken Madras

According to Camellia Panjabi in her excellent book 50 Great Curries of India, the standard Madras curry you can find in restaurants all over the UK cannot be found anywhere in Madras, India.

It is such a common curry in the UK though that I thought I'd publish a version here - especially as some people are 'chili-heads' and like their curries quite hot.

Of course, you don't have to go wild with the chilies in this recipe - most Madras-style recipes I have seen include coconut and tomato, and that is the distinctive flavor to aim for. Adjust the heat to your own requirements.

80g desiccated coconut (or try grated fresh coconut)
400g tin of chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
2 tsp black mustard seeds
2 large onions
5 cloves of garlic
6 fresh green chilies
1 tbsp cumin powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp chili flakes
2 tsp hot paprika
12 curry leaves
4 chicken breasts, diced
125 ml water
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)

Slice one of the onions and fry it in hot oil along with crushed garlic. It is important to pay careful attention to getting some color onto the onions without burning them.

As soon as the onions begin to brown, add the coarsely chopped chilies and continue cooking until the ingredients are soft and the onion golden brown.

While the onion, garlic and chilies are cooking, blitz together the coconut, chopped tomatoes (including the juice) and ginger, in a food processor.

If you can get hold of some tamarind concentrate, this is a nice ingredient to add (1 tbsp) that I have tried in the past.

Once the onions are nicely golden brown, add the cumin, turmeric, coriander powder, chili flakes and hot paprika, and then stir to combine all the ingredients, cooking until fragrant.

Add the diced chicken and stir to coat in the spicy onion mixture.

Add the curry leaves, water, and coconut mixture. Then blitz the second onion in the food processor and add this to the curry.

Bring to the boil and simmer, covered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.