There are just so many karahi recipes around, some are really good, some are average and some just don’t meet the criteria of good karahis. A true karahi is one that doesn’t use onions in the recipe and doesn’t have lashings of gravy. When chicken and lamb dishes include onions, they are destined to be a salun, rus-missa, curry or bhuna but cannot pass as a karahi.
Here goes the recipe of a true karahi (without onions)! Was made for us by one of my cousins, the difference in taste was the addition of Tandoori Masala!! So try not to substitute …..
Ingredients
- 6 tbs vegetable oil
- 1kg chicken cut into small pieces
- 1 tbs crushed garlic
- 2 tbs crushed dry coriander
- 1.5 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 1 tsp red chillie powder (optional)
- 3 tbs chicken tikka masala or
- (1 tsp each of chillie flakes, garam masala, crushed pepper, paprika and 2 tsp chaat masala)
- half tsp turmeric
- 750g chopped tomatoes
- half cup plain yoghurt
- 2 tbs butter/ghee/coconut oil
- 2 tbs finely sliced ginger
- 4 sliced bullet peppers
- 4 tbs fresh sliced coriander
- 1 lemon/lime thinly sliced
Method
- Put the oil into a karahi, heat and add the chicken, stir-fry until chicken pieces are brown, add garlic, crushed coriander, salt, chicken tikka masala if using or other masalas, turmeric and tomatoes.
- Cook together on a medium heat stirring from time to time until the chicken has bhuned and the oil has separated.
- Add the yoghurt and bhun again until all liquids evaporate, check that the chicken is cooked through.
- Add the butter/ghee/coconut oil into a frying pan, heat then add sliced ginger and bullet peppers, fry together for a minute and drop onto the cooked chicken – tarka. (Skip this stage if you don’t like too much oil in your food)
- Top the murgh karahi with fresh coriander, slices of lemon/lime and serve with naans, paronthas or fresh rotis.
