Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Tamarind Chicken with Spinach in a Tomato spiced sauce

Hey all finally got a new recipe and its delicious for all the chicken lovers out there. There are alot of steps to this, so please follow carefully and all should be fine. Ingredients: 4 to 6 tomatoes boiled and peeled 1 tbs Geera seeds 1 tbs mustard seeds 1 inch Ginger chopped finely Indian standard about 4 garlic pods, western standard about two large chopped finely 1 tbs Danya Powder to taste 1 tbs Geera Powder to taste 1 tsp Garam Masala 1/2 tsp cumin powder 3 tbs oil 4 to 5 cups spinach Ghee sugar 4 chicken breasts Marinade for the Chicken: Soya Sauce (however much you want) worsterchire sause (however much you want) 1 tbs Danya Powder 1 tbs chili powder 1 tsp garam masala touch of salt 2tbs Tamarind Powder also known as dry Tam or you can use liquid Tamcon Mix up the marinade in a small cup and set aside. Now butterfly the chicken breasts and smash each one till they are flattened out and tenderized. Pour the marinade on all four chicken breasts on both sides and rub it in well. Set the marinated chicken aside in the fridge up to 2 hours or you can leave overnight. Now in a nonstick pan heat up some Ghee and add the spinach. Once spinach has wilted and it will do so fairly quickly add about a tsp of sugar (this brings down the acidity level) give it a quick stir and set aside. For the Sauce: Boil the tomatoes till the skin starts to crack. Turn the heat off remove the tomatoes,peel and chop up into small bits, not too fine though. In another nonstick pot or pan (please beware that the pan needs to be deep enough for both the chicken and the sauce later on) on low to medium high heat, heat up 3 tbsps oil. Add the mustard seeds and once they start to pop add the geera seeds. Stir till Geera seeds start to change colour, add the ginger and garlic. Stir and fry for a few minutes. Now add the Danya, Geera and Cumin powder stir and mix well. Now take the chopped tomatoes and add this to the pan continuing to stir. Bring it to a simmer and then lower heat and cook for about ten minutes covered. You can add any extra marinade used for the chicken at the end and just add it to the tomatoes. Add salt to taste and garam masala powder in the end, cook for another 5 minutes or so. If you want the liquid to reduce uncover and cook on high. Now for the chicken: Once chicken has marinated for a couple of hours, take the spinach and add a bit of spinach to each of the chicken breasts. Now roll the breasts and seal them with toothpicks or you can sew together so that they are completely sealed. In a nonstick pan heat up enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan on high heat. Once hot (you should hear a sizzle when you add the chicken)put all four chicken breasts in and fry both sides till they are a golden brown colour. Do not over cook the chicken, you just want that colouring on both sides. Turn the heat of and carefully remove the chicken and add the pieces jently to the sauce. You will then need to add some water (enough to cover the chicken pieces till they are almost covered). Turn heat on, bring to a boil, cover and cook on low for about 20 minutes. The tomatoes will add more water content to this, so if it is too liquidy, just uncover in the end and cook on high for another 5 to ten minutes. If the chicken is fully cooked through remove the chicken pieces and just reduce the liquid. Remember to remove the toothpicks and or thread used to bind the chicken, serve with rice and enjoy!

No comments: