Serves 4 as a main dish
Jalfrezi means spicy stir-fry and originates from West Bengal (now in Bangladesh) dating back to the days of the Raj. The chefs of the day brought together meat and vegetables leftovers from the huge Raj banquets in a stir-fry added just a little spice and allowed the dish to cook in it’s own juices. Today the bright colours and varied tastes of the peppers, onions, tomatoes and coriander leaves has made this one of the most poplar dishes in Britain but inevitably it has morphed into something different and includes a healthy dose of Base Curry Sauce. This is the stir-fry version, quick, tasty and fresh. The British-Indian Restaurant version of Chicken Jalfrezi has sauce added.
What you need…
• 4 Tablespoon ghee
• 800g chicken breast or thigh, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 0.5 green pepper, seeded and cut into thin slices
• 0.5 red pepper, seeded and cut into thin slices
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 4 chillies, chopped
• small handful fresh coriander (chop up the stems to add to the curry and set aside the leaves for garnish)
• Salt to taste
• 0.5 teaspoon garam masala
• 2 tomatoes, cut into segments
• Cracked black pepper to garnish
Spice Mix
• 1 Tablespoon curry powder
• 0.5 teaspoon coriander powder
• 0.5 chilli powder
• 0.5 teaspoon turmeric powder
How you make it…
1. Heat 3 Tablespoons of ghee to a medium-hot heat and add the cumin seeds for 30 seconds.
2. Add the chicken pieces and fry until they are all sealed (about 3–4 minutes). Take out the chicken pieces and set aside.
3. Add the rest of the ghee and once hot add the red and green peppers and fry until they start to soften (about 3 minutes).
4. Add the Spice Mix, mix well and cook for 3 minutes.
5. Add the onion, chillies, coriander stems and salt, and cook for 2 minutes. Avoid the temptation to add water.
6. Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes.
7. Add the garam masala and tomatoes, and cook gently until all the chicken pieces are cooked through (about 6–8 minutes). The tomato should be soft but not mushed.
8. Garnish with coriander leaves and a bit of cracked pepper serve immediately.
Serve this as soon as it is cooked to keep the delicious freshness of the ingredients.
If you like this you should try our…
Why did the tomato cross the road? …To tell the chicken they needed him in the pan.
Medium Chicken Curry • Chicken Madras • Chicken Vindaloo • Chicken Bhoona • Chicken Feet Curry (Africa)