Keralan chicken - in coconut sauce... recipe by Anjum Anand...

"Kerala is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was formed on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions. (...) Kerala is a top tourist destination in India. National Geographic's Traveller magazine names Kerala as one of the "ten paradises of the world" and "50 must see destinations of a lifetime". Travel and Leisure names Kerala as "One of the 100 great trips for the 21st century". The Kerala Government Tourism Department, a government department in charge of promoting tourism has adopted the slogan God's Own Country for its campaigns." - by Wikipedia.org

Loved this recipe - you have to do a little bit of stirring but it's very rewarding job :) Sauce is fantastic, nice thick and creamy. I'd say that you need all the spices from the list, I'm pretty sure that it won't be the same if you omit something...

This recipe comes from a great book by Anjum Anand - 'Anjum's New India'.

How to make it...


Ingredients:
- 20 g fresh ginger, chopped
- 7 large cloves of garlic, chopped
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 750 g chicken pieces, skinned
- 2 medium large tomatoes, pureed (I used tomato concentrate)
- 12 curry leaves
- 150-200 ml coconut milk (I used 250 ml)
- salt to taste

Spice blend:
- 2 tablespoons white poppy seed
- 1 heaped tablespoon coriander seeds or ground coriander
- 1 1/2 cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/2-1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 2 teaspoons fennel seeds

Using a blender, make a fine paste of the spice blend with the ginger, garlic and 100 ml water.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large non-stick pan and fry the onion until brown. Stir in the spice paste and salt and cook until completely reduced, then fry over a low heat for 1-2 minutes.
Add the chicken and lightly brown for 2 minutes. Add curry leaves, tomatoes and 200 m water. Bring to the boiling point, cover and cook over a low heat for 20 minutes or until chicken in done. Uncover and reduce your sauce until you have about 1 cm left. Stir in the coconut milk and add some water for a good creamy sauce. Bring back to boil and cook for further 2 minutes. Serve with rice.

Smacznego!