Ghee Wali Chicken Curry Recipe

The name ghee chicken curry itself is enough to testify that the dish is delicious. Ghee or clarified butter is very widely used in the Indian cuisine. But ghee is rarely used as the main flavour of a chicken curry recipe. Usually, ghee is added to other Indian chicken recipes for its aroma only. But for ghee chicken curry, clarified butter is the flavour, not the smell. That is why ghee chicken curry is a very rare dish.

The recipe for this chicken curry is not very complicated. In fact, it uses all the normal spices that are used in an Indian chicken recipe. The only difference is that warm ghee is used to season this dish after it is cooked. It is by all means a royal recipe because only kings and emperors could afford to have so much ghee daily!

Ghee Chicken

Serves: 4
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • Chicken- 700 grams (medium sized pieces)
  • Ghee- 1 cup (approximately 60 grams)
  • Lemon juice- 2tbsp
  • Onions- 2 (chopped)
  • Garlic pods- 8
  • Ginger- 1 inch (finely sliced)
  • Green chillies- 2 (chopped)
  • Tomato- 1 (chopped)
  • Jeera or cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
  • Kalounji- 1/2 tsp
  • Bay leaf- 1
  • Cinnamon stick- 1 inch
  • Cardamom pods- 2
  • Red chilli powder- 1/2 tsp
  • Cumin powder- 1tsp
  • Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
  • Kasuri methi or dry fenugreek leaves- 1tbsp
  • Salt- as per taste

Procedure

  1. Marinate the chicken with lemon juice and salt for 30 minutes. Meanwhile chop all the spices that you need for the dish.
  2. Now heat half a cup ghee in a deep bottomed pan. Season it with bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon and cumin seeds.
  3. Add onions and saute on a low flame for 3-4 minutes. When the onions become translucent, add chicken pieces.
  4. Saute the chicken pieces for 3-4 minutes more until they start turning golden.
  5. Then add ginger, garlic and green chillies. The garlic must be whole to reduce its pungent flavour.
  6. Cook for 2 minutes and then add tomatoes. Sprinkle salt, red chilli, cumin and garam masala powder.
  7. Mix it well and saute for another 5-6 minutes on a low flame. Then add 1 cup of water. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
  8. You need to keep stirring it to prevent the curry from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
  9. After 10 minutes, when the chicken is totally cooked, heat the left over ghee in a deep ladle.
  10. When it gets warm, add kasuri methi and heat it for 30 seconds.
  11. Now add this warm ghee as a seasoning or chok to the chicken curry.

You can serve ghee chicken curry with pulao and also with naans.

Story first published: Thursday, March 14, 2013, 19:31 [IST]