Anecdote
Sharmita and I are actually quite poles apart. The main difference
is that she is slim and trim, ahem, let’s not go that way about yours truly. We
almost never agree on movies. We also most often disagree on food as we almost
always like different restaurants. We dress quite differently, of course with
such different body types, what did I expect?
Having said that we are rather different, we are also pretty
similar. Our views about child rearing are almost identical. We are two women
who worked together on an equal footing and never fought. We support each other
largely, almost often, in our quest for woman power, the battle being drawn
against the spouses most often. And most importantly, there have been many moments
of shared happy banter in the last 12 years.
Sharmita claims to be a non-cook, well her husband says she never
cooks any vegetarian dishes after he has turned vegetarian!. Well, this
statement being as unfounded as it sounds, Sharmita is not much of a kitchen
person yet loves to throw parties and serve home-made meals. This is one recipe
which she had been advocating to me since two years, a specialty of her
mother, and I take my hats off to both the ladies, it is an outstanding one!
Stuff that you must have:
Chicken, a kilo, curry pcs
Ginger, 2 inches
Garlic, 8 odd pods
Turmeric powder
Tomatoes, 2 big ones
Pepper powder
Lemon juice, a tsp
Green chillies, 2
Kashmiri chilly powder
Cardamom, 3pods
Onions, 1 big
Garam masala powder
Kasuri methi
Cream, 1 cup
Salt
What to do:
Step 1
Marinate the chicken with 11/2 tsp ginger paste, 11/2 tsp garlic
paste, ½ tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp pepper powder, 1 tsp lemon juice. Keep aside
for 6 hours or overnight.
Step 2
Take 2 tomatoes and cut into big pcs. Chop 1 tsp ginger and garlic
respectively and finely. Take the green chillies, cardamom, ½ tsp Kashmiri chilly
powder and a cup of water. Cook everything together for 3 to 4 minutes. Grind to a paste. This is your
tomato paste.
Step 3
Shallow fry the marinated chicken till it is slightly brown
Step 4
In a warm wok, add oil. Now add 1 tbsp chopped ginger and 1 large
chopped onion. Fry till golden brown and soft. Now add 2 tsp Kashmiri chilly
powder, ½ tsp turmeric powder, ¼ tsp pepper powder, ½ tsp Garam masala powder
and ½ tsp Kasuri methi. Fry the masalas for 2 minutes in low flame. Now add the
tomato paste from step 2. When it simmers, add the chicken post step 3and cook
till the chicken is soft.
Step 5
Pour a cup pf fresh cream and serve garnished with coriander
leaves.
How to serve:
A very North Indian or rather Afghani tasting gravy dish, it is
best served with Roti or Paratha. Methi infused roti would be really nice. Though
we have already used methi in the gravy, the fragrance is subtle.
Trivia:
Use of cream in Indian curries, especially in meat dishes dates back
to Moghul era. This in turn was largely influenced by Afghani and Middle
eastern cuisines.
