Mughal Chicken with Blanched Almonds and Fresh Mint

Mrs.Dr.Fork

1 cup blanched almonds or a combination of ¾ cup blanched almonds and ¼ cup raw cashews, divided

12 whole cardamom pods

8 pieces of chicken (cut up whole chicken, or all thigh pieces, or all breast halves)

3 tablespoons butter or ghee

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 stick cinnamon, broken in 2

1 teaspoon grated gingerroot

1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

1 tablespoon cumin powder

2 tablespoons coriander powder

1 teaspoon red chili powder

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

½ teaspoon fennel powder

½ teaspoon black pepper

3 teaspoons salt

2 medium peeled tomatoes (use canned), well chopped

1 cup plain yogurt

¼ cup water

1 cup well packed fresh, whole, mint leaves

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon garam masala

In a blender or food processor, blend ¼ cup of almonds or cashews in a little water to create a nut paste (cashews will make the sauce smoother).

Open cardamoms by pressing them against a cutting board with the flat edge of a knife. Extract seeds and grind in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder.

Skin chicken and trim off all visible fat. Wash, pat dry, and set aside.

Heat butter and oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan and fry onions on high heat for about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add cinnamon, ginger, and garlic and fry until the onions change color, about 7 minutes. Stir constantly during this entire step to prevent scorching.

Add all powdered spices plus pepper and salt. Fry, stirring, for about 2½ minutes on medium heat. Add a little water to prevent scorching, if necessary.

Add chopped tomatoes and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the chicken pieces and cook for 3 minutes, turning the pieces to coat them well with the mixture.

Mix the yogurt and water. Add it, with the whole almonds, to the pan, turn the heat to high, and mix well. Cover and cook over low heat (light simmer), turning occasionally, until the meat is tender. If cooking mixed dark and white meat, check breast pieces and remove when fork-tender. Continue to cook dark meat.

Add mint leaves, cilantro, and garam masala and mix well. Remove from heat, cover and keep turning occasionally until a cooler serving temperature is reached.

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