This is a recipe my nephew gave me. He had been living in Fiji at the time. He actually prepared the meal for me on one of his lay-over flights.
Oh my but it was delicious and soooo HOT. I mean really, REALLY, spicy hot. So I made a few changes to bring it down a notch and renamed it ‘Indo-Fijian Recipe with a Twist’ … my twist. So far the reviews have been great but you can always ramp it up again if you need a little more heat on your plate.
Chicken Curry (Indo-Fijian Recipe with a Twist)
Ingredients
1/2 large onion
6 garlic cloves
2 tbsp fresh ginger root
1/2 cup chicken broth
12 Thai chilies
or 2 tsp crushed hot chili peppers
1/2 large onion
4 chicken thighs
2 medium potatoes
1 cup carrots
1 cup caulifower
1 cup broccoli
2 tbsp ghee or clarified butter
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black mustard seed
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp yellow curry powder
1 can of coconut milk
1/4 c finely chopped cilantro
1 cup jasmine or basmati ricec
Directions
Place the rice in a sauce pan or in a rice cooker and add 2 cups of water. Cook and set aside.
Place the chicken broth, garlic, ginger, chilies and half the onion in the food processor and purée.
Dice the other half of the onion and cube the chicken into bite size pieces and set aside.
In a large frying pan or wok (medium heat) add ghee, seeds and bay leaf and toast/fry until golden (about 2 to 3 minutes). Be careful it doesn’t burn. Remove bay leaf. Add the onion and chicken being sure to coat with the toasted seeds. Fry (approximately 4 minutes) turning two or three times.
Cut potato and carrot in bite size pieces and add all vegetables to the wok. Add puree, remaining spices and coconut milk. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cilantro and simmer for another 5 minutes.
To serve, place a layer of rice on plate with a well in the middle and fill the well with curry.
Tip: If I am in a hurry or don’t have fresh cauliflower or broccoli on hand, I just throw in a bag of frozen (mixed) vegetables.
This recipe may seem like a lot of work but, trust me, it is well worth the effort.
