Kashmiri Chicken

Today my brother sent me a very interesting article about this entrepreneur in India who started a pearl farming business with an investment of USD7000 and within three years has grown it into a USD7M business.  He did not come from a family of pearl farmers.  Then what must have prompted him to go into this business?  An astrologer!  Yes, you read it right – an astrologer.  He met an astrologer who told him that he has a future in pearls and that is why he went and learnt about pearl farming and is a successful businessman today. 

India is the centre of the IT service industry and engineers and developers and computer wizards working here still would not even see the face of their new born if the stars are not in the correct position.  It is a country on contradictions.  There is belief and hope in everything.  This blind belief in more times than not is pure superstition but the nation is also a nation of hope.  Hope for the future – their future.  The country still has to deal with corruption, with over-population and age old beliefs and customs.  These things will not be changed over-night but you do see that glimpse of change. 

Preparation Time: 45 minutes + 2 hours marinating time

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1 kilo chicken, cut into medium sized pieces

2 cups yoghurt

4 medium sized white onions

2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste

5 dried red chilies

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

2 bay leaves

2” cinnamon

10 green cardamoms

½ teaspoon black pepper  corns

6 cloves

½ cup cashew nuts, broken bits

10 almonds

¼ tsp saffron

2 tablespoons lime juice

¼ kilo tomatoes

Salt to taste

4 tablespoons sunflower oil

Method:

1. Grind two onions.   
2. Mix the ground onions, ginger-garlic paste and yoghurt and marinate the chicken in this mixture for 2 hours refrigerated.  
3. Lightly roast the red chilies, bay leaves, cumin, black pepper, cloves, cardamom, cashew and almonds on low flame till light brown in color.  
4. Now grind to a smooth paste along with the tomatoes and keep this aside.  
5. Finely chop the remaining two onions.  Heat oil in a thick bottomed vessel and when hot, add these onions.  
6. When the onions turn golden brown, add the tomato mixture and fry for about 5 minutes on medium flame.  
7. Now add the chicken-yoghurt mixture and keep vessel covered on low flame till the chicken is cooked, approximately 30 minutes.  
8. Now add the lime juice and the saffron and cook for another couple of minutes.  Serve hot with rice or bread.  You can substitute the chicken with lamb, but then the cooking times would increase in step 7.