Chicken Balti Curry from Balti Triangle

Submitted by KateL

"Entered for ZWT. Balti is an curry style associated with Birmingham, England, and is associated with England, although it originated in the Pakistani and Kashmiri communities in the 1970s. The Balti Triangle is a concentration of 50 Balti restaurants in Birmingham. This recipe is endorsed by the Birmingham City Council. A balti curry is a curry cooked over a high flame with spiced fresh meat and/or vegetables then cooked again with extra spices and served in the traditional round-bottomed balti dish (similar to a Japanese danobe or a flat-bottomed wok). Birmingham has balti cook-offs just as the U.S. loves its chili cook-offs. In June 2012, a collection of Indian restaurants in Birmingham have teamed up to have the ingredients of the Balti dish protected by EU legislation. Palm sugar can be found in the Thai food section. Serve piping hot in balti dishes with naan breads on the side."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 5mins
• Ingredients: 23
• Serves: 2

ingredients

• SPICES

• 1⁄2 teaspoon mustard seeds, crushed
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 4 dried curry leaves, crushed
• 1 teaspoon palm sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon nigella seeds (aka black cumin or black caraway)
• 3 green chilies, chopped
• 4 cardamom pods, split

• OTHER INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon peanut oil or 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cm fresh ginger, peeled and grated - 1/2 inch
• 2 large chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 250 ml vegetable stock (8 1/2 oz.) or 250 ml chicken stock (8 1/2 oz.)
• 1 teaspoon tomato puree
• 1 pinch salt (or more to taste)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro or 2 tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped
• 1 large tomatoes, sliced

directions

1. First assemble the spices: mustard seeds in one small bowl, the rest can be mixed together in another bowl. Put the onion in one bowl. Put the garlic and ginger in another small bowl.
2. To begin the curry, heat the oil in a large pan. Once hot but not smoking, add the lightly crushed mustard seeds, cook for 30 seconds only, beware they may pop and spit out of the pan.
3. Add the chopped onion, lower the heat and cook for approx 3-5 minutes until soft but not colored.
4. Then, add all the spices plus the garlic and ginger. Cook on a medium heat taking care to ensure the spices don't burn.
5. Add the chicken, stirring well to make sure all the chicken is coated in the spices. Cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally to make sure the chicken or spices are not burning.
6. Finally, add the stock, the tomato purée, a small pinch of salt and the bay leaf. Stir again and then lower the heat. Cook gently for 25 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and tender.
7. Finally add the cilantro/coriander and tomato, stir and cook for a further 3 minutes.