Chicken Kormark

A mild curry, suitable for children.  Add chillies to taste for a hotter version.

Ingredients (serves 6)

1 ½ teaspoon Garlic and Ginger paste

1 teaspoon Coriander seed

1 ½ teaspoons Cumin seeds

3cm Cinnamon stick

½ teaspoon Turmeric

1 teaspoon Mango Powder

1 teaspoon Paprika

½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon Asafoetida powder

1 teaspoon Garam Masala

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoonful Coconut oil

1 x 440ml can Coconut milk

1 large red pepper

6 x skinned chicken breasts

1 x large red onion

6 x medium mushrooms

2 tablespoons water

The Prep

1 - To make the garlic and ginger paste, take a 6 cm piece of ginger and a whole head of garlic cloves, peeled, and put into a blender or mixer with 1 tablespoon of the water. We would use the Bamix mill for this task.  Blend until you have a smooth paste.  Alternatively, you could make the paste in a mortar and pestle, or pre-prepared Garlic and Ginger paste is available from Asian supermarkets.

2 – Dice the onion, slice the mushrooms and chop the red pepper into ½ cm pieces.  Set aside in 3 separate piles.

3 – Chop the chicken breasts into 2-3 cm chunks.

4 – Dry fry the whole spices (Coriander and Cumin seeds, plus Cinnamon stick) over a high heat for a minute, grind and set aside.  I would use a Mortar and Pestle although you could buy pre-ground spices as an alternative. I find frying first and then grinding releases more flavour.

5 – To make the curry paste, put the chopped red pepper, ground cumin, coriander and cinnamon plus turmeric, Mango powder, Paprika, Cayenne Pepper, remaining water and garlic & ginger paste in a blender (again, I would use the Bamix mill or the Mortar and Pestle) until the consistency is smooth and runny.  It should be red/pink in colour.

The Method

Spoon the Coconut oil into a large pan or Wok over medium heat.  Coconut oil is solid but will melt quickly, releasing a sweet aroma.  Chuck in the onion and sauté until lightly browned at edges (about 2 minutes), then add the chicken pieces.  Fry for a minute or so.

Pour in the red/pink paste and stir well, coating all of the chicken.  Then add the coconut milk and the mushrooms. If you put the mushrooms in any earlier then they may well shrivel up. Stir well.  After a few seconds, the colour shapeshifts to a light and then medium yellow/brown.  Bring to the boil.  The sauce will be quite watery.

To enhance the flavours, now add the salt and Garam Masala.  Finally lob in the Asafoetida powder, which helps to prevent that nasty bloated feeling you sometimes get after a take-away.  Stir and mix frequently.  Turn the heat down and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the sauce reduces and has a creamier texture.  The colour should now be a rich mid-brown.  Serve with whatever accompaniment you like.

We made this last night in less than an hour from start to finish and served it with jacket potatoes.  The kids all loved it and wanted seconds. No chance – all gone. Dishwasher hardly required.