Ayam Madras Kariana

Madras Chicken Curry - MY style..

Not feeling well today..tried to focus myself while teaching this afternoon ...so lethargic...but hungry tummies will not wait for any sick chef.So, I picked up all the energy that I have to cook a hassle-free dish. Still, I would say that it will fulfill any hungy man's wish.And one more thing : Please be assured that the food was cooked hygienically..*smile*

Ingredients

1 chicken - cut into 8 or 12 pcs, removed of excess fat and skin

To be grounded

5 onions - (yes, 5 , the more the better)
5 cloves of garlic
2 inches of ginger
a little water

Mix the ground ingrdients with :
6 tbsp of meat curry powder (I chose my favourite brand MALABAR MASALA)

1 inch of cinnamon bark (kayu manis)
2 star anise (bunga lawang)
2 cardamom (buah pelaga)

3 cups of water
1 Tbsp salt( adjust to taste )
4 potatoes - cut into equal chunks (quartered)
2 carrots - cut into 2 inch wedges
1 tomato - wedges
garnishing of fried shallots

Method

Heat 1 cup of oil in wok. Saute the cinnamon bark, star anise and cardamom for a few seconds to release the beautiful aroma. Quickly add in the ground ingredients (with the curry powder mixed together)
and saute the spices till fragrant and oil begins to surface. Add in the chicken pieces and stir, coating them with the mixture and searing the meat. Salt. Add in the 3 cups of water, potatoes and carrots and bring the heat down to a rapid simmer until chicken is tender and potatoes and carrots are cooked. The gravy would have been reduced at this stage. Remove from heat, dump in tomatoes and sprinkle some fried shallots over it. Adjust water to suit yr preferred gravy consistency. I love a mildly-thick consistency. Serve with hot rice or with bread.



Note : I didn't have to add in any coconut milk. The thickness of the gravy comes from the generous heaping of curry powder and onions. Therefore, this dish won't turn bad as fast as the ones using coconut milk. U can also freeze any leftover to be consumed the next day. Just heat up well.