Friday 15 August 2014

Chicken Palak (Chicken & Spinach)

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Chicken Palak


Chicken Palak (chicken spinach) has always been a favourite dish in my mothers household and now also in my own. The combination of greens such as spinach, dill and dried fenugreek give this curry a strong earthy flavour. The aromas waft all through the house leaving hungry mouth salivating!
Be sure to give this yummy recipe a try.


Ingredients

3lbs of boneless chicken
5-6 cloves of garlic
2 inch piece of ginger
3-4 medium onions
Half can of chopped tomatoes
3 cans of spinach leaves (You can use fresh if you prefer, cans just save time)
1 whole cup of chopped dill
Half cup of dried fenugreek leaves ( You can use fresh if you prefer)
3-4 green chilies
2-3 tspn salt
2 tspn chili powder
2 tspn of garam masala
1 tspn cumin powder
1 tspn turmeric powder
5 tbspn Oil or ghee 

Method

 1. Grind the onions to a paste (to make easier add a few tablespoons of water to help it grind better)
when water dries up add the garlic and ginger and continue cooking until all water has evaporated.



2. Add the chicken and cook till browning, then add the chopped tomatoes, spices and salt.


3. Stir till well mixed, cover and leave till chicken releases its own juices.

Chicken releases its own water when cooking

4. Now turn heat up and cook on high till water evaporates. When water has dried up add your spinach and combine well.


5. Cook for a about 5 minutes then add your dill mix together well. When adding the dried fenugreek leaves make sure you remove any stalks as they do not cook through.

Dried fenugreek leaves, remove stalks as can be seen in this picture above.
Fresh Dill added to the chicken give a delightful flavour and aroma!
6. Now cook for a good ten minutes for about 10 minutes until all water has evaporated. Then chop up green chilies and mix in.



7. If you wish the curry to be more saucy add about 2 cups of warm water and cook till it reaches you desired consistency.


Serve with freshly made chapatis or plain Basmati rice. Enjoy!!

Bil-hana wa al shifa'a!