Creamy Cardamom Chicken

Submitted by English_Rose

"This is a mildly spiced Persian dish of tender chicken in a creamy, mild sauce. It is easy to make and re-heats very well if made ahead of time."

 

• Ready In: 35mins
• Ingredients: 16
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 2⁄3 cup Greek yogurt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 4 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons green cardamom pods
• 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
• 1 ounce butter
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2⁄3 cup chicken broth
• 1 1⁄2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated (about 1 1/2 in piece)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2⁄3 cup heavy cream
• 3 ounces ground almonds
• salt and pepper
• cilantro, sprigs, to garnish

directions

1. Mix the yogurt with the cornstarch and set to one side. Cut each of the chicken breasts into 3 or 4 chunky pieces.
2. Lightly crush the cardamom pods so that the green husks split open, then remove the little brownish-black seeds from inside. Grind these into a fine powder with a pestle and mortar.
3. Heat the oil and butter in a flameproof casserole dish, add the chicken and cook over a medium heat until lightly browned all over. Add the turmeric, cinnamon, coriander and ground cardamom seeds and cook for a further minute.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the broth, grated ginger, lemon juice and the yogurt mixture. Return the pan to the heat, bring to a simmer and leave to cook gently for 15 minutes until the chicken is tender. (You can now set the dish aside until later if you wish).
5. Mix the cream with the ground almonds, stir into the chicken and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Season to taste and serve, garnished with sprigs of cilantro.

Reviews

[momaphet]

We enjoyed this dish a lot! As stated it is mildly spiced, I would probably add more the next time. I had roasted chicken on hand, so I cooked the spices a little in the butter then proceeded with the sauce, adding the cooked chicken where the recipe states. I served this over Recipe #423902 along with Garlic Naan. Thanks English_Rose for sharing. Made by one of the Unrulies Under the Influence for ZWT6.

 

[SolightlyUK]

This is such an aromatic and delicious blend of flavors; we ate up every drip of it. Okay, it's an indulgence and you can't have it often but it is a great special meal and I will make it for guests next time. I bought all the ingredients and then didn't realize until it was time to make it that I needed a mortar & pestle which I did not have. I just put the seeds (from the cardamom pods) into my blender and then had a good go at them with a meat tenderizing "hammer". I was concerned that they might still be in too big of pieces (they were definitely not powdered) but I took a chance and we never noticed them in the final (yummy) dish so they were obviously small enough. Everything else I followed exactly and served with basmati rice and a side of carrots and green beans. Oh so good! Thanks, English Rose!