Handi Chicken

How to cook… North Indian Handi

Recipes

Serves 2 as a main dish

Handi refers to the broad-based pots in which the dish is traditionally cooked. Handi pots are used all over the sub-continent resulting in thousands of versions of this chicken dish. This is the archetypal North Indian Handi, courtesy of @thecurriedlondoner, producing a glossy, onion and tomato-based gravy, wrapped around boneless chicken thighs, finshed with a splash of cream.

What you need…
• 3 Tablespoons oil
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 onion
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon ginger and garlic paste
• 1 fresh long chilli
• 500g boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 2 Tablespoons Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 0.5 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 3 Tablespoons yoghurt
• 1 Tablespoon cream
• 1 teaspoon fenugreek leaves
• 0.5 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 50ml water
• fresh coriander and cream to garnish

How you make it…
1. Set a large, lidded pan over a medium-high heat and add the oil. Once hot, add the cumin seeds and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add finely chopped onions and tomatoes and cook until soft (about 5 minutes). Add the ginger-garlic paste, crispy fried onions and fresh chilli and cook for 3 minutes more. Add a splash of water if needed.
3. Add the chicken, stir thoroughly and cook until selaed on all sides (about 8–10 minutes).
4. Add the chilli powder, coriander, turmeric and yoghurt, stir and cover the pan with a lid and cook over a medium-high heat for 10 minutes. Add a splash of water if needed
5. Add the cream, fenugreek leaves, garam masala and salt, stir and cook for 2 minutes.
6. Add the water and cook, uncovered until the chicken is cooked and the gravy has thickened (about 10 mnutes).
7. Garnish with a generous spinkling of corinader and a drizzle of cream and serve.
• Recipe courtesy @thecurriedlondoner

CHEF’S TIP
If you are cooking the crispy onions yourself use a small amount of oil and keep turning them to ensure they are cooked evenly all over.

If you like this you should try our…
Medium Chicken Curry • Chicken Madras • Chicken Vindaloo • Chicken Bhoona • Chicken Feet Curry (Africa)

You don’t have need a chef to cook this dish… you can just call a handy man.
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How to cook… Handi Chicken

Curry News

Serves 4 as a main dish

Handi Chicken is a popular Punjabi dish named after the wide Indian cooking pot used particularly in north India and Pakistan. The famous Balti has origins in dishes such as these.

What you need…
• 2 Tablespoons ghee
• 3 onions sliced
• 2 teaspoons ginger paste
• 5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• salt to taste
• 800g chicken, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 5-6 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 Tablespoons plain yoghurt
• 1 Tablespoon double cream
• small handful of fresh coriander, chopped

Spice Mix 1
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds crushed
• 3 whole chillies

Spice Mix 2
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon chilli powder


How to make it…
1. Heat the ghee in a pan. Add Spice Mix 1 and fry for 15 seconds. to test if ghee is hot enough put in one cumin seed. It should sizzle immediately).
2. Add the onions and fry until they are golden brown.
3. Add the ginger, garlic, Spice Mix 2 and salt, stir well and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add in the chicken and cook until all the pieces are white. This should take about 3–4 minutes.
5. Add in the tomatoes and cook for 8 minutes.
6. Add in the yoghurt, cream and most of the fresh coriander (keep a small bit for the garnish), stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes. Ensure that the chicken is cooked through.
7. Serve, garnished with the remainder of the fresh coriander.
• Recipe by Kedar Chandra, chef at Pakbo restaurant in Flic en Flac, Mauritius.


CHEF’S TIP
The stalks of the coriander have the most flavour, so mix them in with the curry and keep the leaves for the garnish.

If you like this you should try our…
Sindhi Biryani • Medium Chicken Curry • Chicken Madras • Chicken Vindaloo • Chicken Bhoona

Why did the chicken cross the leather? … To get to the other suede.

Recipe… Handi Chicken

Recipes

Handi Chicken.jpg

Handi Chicken
Serves 4

What you need
• 3 tsp ghee
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp coriander seeds crushed
• 3 whole chillies
• 3 onions sliced
• 2 tsp ginger paste
• 5 cloves garlic finely chopped
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek
• salt to taste
• 750g chicken cut into bite-sized chunks
• 5-6 tomatoes chopped
• 1½ cup plain yoghurt
• 1 cup cream
• Handful of fresh coriander, chopped

How you cook it
1. Heat ghee in a pan.
2. Add the cumin seeds, crushed coriander, whole chillies and fry for 20 seconds (to test if ghee is hot enough put in one cumin seed. It should sizzle immediately).
3. Add the onions and fry until they are golden brown.
4. Add the ginger paste, chopped garlic, turmeric powder, coriander powder, chilli powder, dried fenugreek, salt and stir well.
5. Add in the chicken and cook until all the pieces are white (but not fully cooked). This should take about five minutes.
6. Add in the tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes.
7. Add in the yoghurt, cream and most of the fresh coriander (keep a small bit for the garnish), stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes. Ensure that the chicken is cooked through.
8. Once ready put into a serving bowl and garnish with the remainder of the fresh coriander.
9. Serve with rice, chapati and a yoghurt and tomato raita.

Kedar
Recipe by Kedar Chandra, chef at Pakbo restaurant in Flic en Flac, Mauritius.

 

 

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