Chicken Bhuna Recipe
Tuesday, May 24th, 2011"Bhuna" doesn't actually refer to a curry - the word describes the cooking process of spices, where they are fried over a medium heat to reveal their favours. Below is my chicken bhuna recipe that follows this method of cooking. The chicken breast meat is added to the spices and basically cooks in it's own juice.
This recipe serves 4, has a preparation time of 2 hours and a cooking time of 30 minutes.
Curry ingredients:
4 chicken breasts, 6 tbsp plain natural yoghurt, 2 garlic cloves, 1 tsp garam masala, 1 lemon, tsp turmeric, 1 tbsp paprika, 3 cardamoms, tbsp salt, 1 tbsp ground chilli, 1 tbsp cumin, vegetable oil, olive oil, fresh coriander.
The ingredients for the pilau rice:
2 cups basmati rice, 1 onion, 1 clove of garlic, cinnamon stick, 2 cardamom pods, 1 tbsp fennel seeds, vegetable oil.
Method: Preparing the Chicken
1. Pour the yoghurt into a bowl with the spices (garam masala, turmeric, paprika and cumin). Add the salt, chilli and cardamoms (husk removed), and crush in the garlic.
2. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon into the bowl and mix well with a wooden spoon.
3. Cut the chicken into small chunks and put into the bowl. Use your hands to completely cover the chicken pieces in your marinade.
Method: The Pilau Rice
1. Chop the onion into fine pieces and add to a saucepan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Fry gently.
2. While the onion is frying wash the rice well in cold water before adding this to the pan. Crush in the garlic and add the cinnamon, fennel seeds and cardamom. Cover the whole mixture with cold water and turn up the heat.
3. Once the water begins to boil allow it to do so for a further 5 minutes. After this time, put the lid on the saucepan, turn off the heat and allow it to settle for 20 minutes.
Method: The Curry
1. Put a frying pan over a medium to High Heat, and add a tablespoon of vegetable and olive oil. Add the chicken to the pan and fry until you are happy the chicken has been cooked thoroughly.
2. Add some garam masala and coriander to the pan and continue to fry for another 30 seconds.
3. Dish the rice onto 4 warm plates, and then add the chicken. I always recommend a slice of naan bread too, and why not push the boat out and have a beer to wash it down with!
For loads more chicken breast recipes click the link!