Quick Goan Chicken Curry

Be grateful for the home you have, knowing that at this moment, all you have is all you need. – Sarah Ban Breathnach 

Spicy but not too hot. Make sure you simmer the chicken long enough to cook it through.

It’s getting progressively more difficult to pull off any cooking at all, let alone interesting things, from my kitchen.

On Sunday we sold our kitchen table and chairs. It’s amazing how important that is to a functioning kitchen.

With the move only days away things are starting to form piles around the house: throw, keep and “maybe.” The Maybe pile is more accurately described as the “go through this and throw out what you don’t need. I don’t know what you want to keep.”

I’m married to a good man. I’m lucky, and very grateful.

Brown the onions to add flavour.

So I thought I would pull off a little chicken curry for dinner last night. It's something we both really like.

This one’s interesting. It has no tomatoes so the sauce is yellow. It’s also coconut milk based and not super hot. More spicy (cinnamon, cumin, etc.) than hot, which is always nice.

Why "quick"? Usually the chicken is marinated in a spice paste made of many of the ingredients I list. I shortened the method by combining the marinade into the dish and cooking right in the resulting sauce.

Truth be told it only has to marinate for 1/2 hour, but I was pressed for time.

Here’s a little secret. There’s three different kinds of coconut milk. Low fat, regular, and then a thicker version. The thicker one is always best to use in recipes.

You can buy it at the local Atlantic Superstore. It’s Rooster Brand Gold Label. Since it’s thicker, you don’t have to reduce it as much so you have more sauce in the end.

It’s in the aisle with the canned milk – not the imported foods. Go figure.

Give this one a try. I’m sure you’ll like it.

Slow and low simmering infuses the chicken. I removed
the skin before simmering. It's optional.

Quick Goan Chicken Curry

Prep: 5 min  |  Cook: 30 min  |  Serves 4

8 chicken things

1 tsp yellow mustard seeds 

2 medium onions, sliced

4 garlic cloves, finely sliced

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1 tsp whole cumin

1 tsp chilli pepper flakes

400ml can coconut milk

Juice of 1 lemon

salt and pepper

Place the chicken skin side up in a hot sauté pan. Let the chicken brown on the bottom until it releases. Season with salt and pepper. Turn and let brown on the skin side. The chicken will naturally release when it is ready.

Remove to a plate and drain off all but about 1 tbsp of the rendered fat.

Add the onion, garlic and mustard seeds. Let cook until the onions soften and start to brown slightly. If the mixture starts to stick add a little water and scrape the bottom. Add the paprika, cinnamon, turmeric, cardamom, cumin and chilli flakes. Cook for about 1 minute.

Add the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust spices, salt and pepper if desired. Nestle the chicken into the sauce and squeeze in half of the lemon juice. Let cook until the sauce is reduced and the chicken finishes cooking through.

Serve with basmati rice. Just before serving squeeze a little lemon on top.

........................................................................................................................ 

Questions? Comments? Derogatory remarks? Just ask! I’ll answer as best I can. If you like this post feel free to share it using any of the links. If you repost, please give me credit and a link back to this site.