| CHICKEN
AND CASHEWNUTS IN BLACK SPICES
KAJU CHICKEN
IN KAALA MASALA (BOMBAY)
Maharashtrians have a powdered spice maxture
called kaala masala which they use in many dished. Kaala
means black, and it is a comination of dark-coloured spices,
a kind of garam masala with the addition of coriander seeds
and cumin.This is a thick, nutty curry of chicken with lots of cashew
nuts, whole and crushed, and is delicious. The recipe comes from
the wife of the famous gynaecologist of Bombay, the late Dr Shirodkar.
Eat it with rotis. Lemon rice also goes with it since thedish
has no touch
of sourness.
| Serves
4 |
|
| 1kg
chicken, skinned |
6
cloves |
| 1/2
coconut (100gms) grated |
3-in
(7.5-cm) cinnamon stick |
| 12
plump garlic cloves, peeled |
225g
cashew nuts |
1
x 1/2-in (2.5 x 1-cm) pieve of fressh
ginger, chopped |
1
large onion, chipped |
| 21/2
tablespoon coriander seeds |
1/2
teaspoon coarse pepper power |
| 11/2
teaspoons cumin seeds |
4
tablespoons oil |
| 4
whole dried red chillies |
salt |
1 Cut the chicken into 8 pieces
2 In a large frying pan without any fat or oil, roast the
coconut, garlic, ginger, coriander seeds,cumin seeds, red chillies,
cloves and cinnamon over a low heat. After 5 minute add 50g of the
cashew nuts and the onion and roast for a further 10 minutes, stirring
all the tim. Turn off the heat and leave to cool. Add the pepper
powder. Grind the mixture in a bleder or food processor with 3/4
cup water to a fine consistency.
3 Separately grind loz (25g) of the remaining cashwes nuts
with a littl;e water to make a fine paste and set aside.
4 Heat the oil in a cooking pot, add the ground spice mixture
and fry for 10 minutes over a low head. Add the ground cashew nuts
and salt to taste and fry for further 2-3 minutes.
5 Add the chicken, turn up the heat to moderate and fry for
5 minutes. Then add 3 cup water and leave to cook over a low heat
for 10 minutes, covered.
6 Add the remaining cashew nuts and coninue to cook until
the chicken is done. You should have a thick, dark curry with whole
cashew nuts in it.When grinding the spices and cashew nuts make
sure that the resultant paste is smooth and fine by grinding for
a long time until you get this consistency. IF not, the curryy will
look as if it has curdled. |
