Spiced Yogurt Chook

Adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's Essential Curries

I was craving for something sweet-ish but not a dessert ... not an eye-popping type sweet ... something sweet but savoury at the same time. Yes, I'm a difficult person/tummy to satisfy. And my husband will vouch for this ... I'm super grumpy when I'm hungry and don't get what I crave for. Poor guy.

So when I saw this recipe, my tastebuds popped out of their sockets and I could literally eat the page right out of that book. I could just imagine those flavors, and that was exactly what I needed right then. Sweet from the raisins, a light tartness from the yogurt, spices for savoury ... absoverylutely perfect!

Yay! It's gonna be a good day!

INGREDIENTS

250 ml natural yogurt

1 tsp salt

fresh ground black pepper

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp chilli powder (I thought this was a little mild, add more if you prefer)

1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander

1 kg chicken pieces

oil

5 cardamom pods

3 cloves

1 stick cinnamon

2 bay leaves

3 tbs slivered almonds,

2 tbs sultanas / raisins

METHOD

Mix together yogurt, 1/2 tsp salt, black pepper, ground cumin, ground coriander, chilli powder and half of the fresh chopped coriander. Set aside.

Season chicken pieces with the other 1/2 tsp salt and some black pepper.

Heat some oil in a pan and add in cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon stick and bay leaves. Stir a little and then add in the chicken pieces. Brown on both sides and remove to a large bowl.

Put the sultanas/raisins and almonds into the same hot oil. Stir quickly. Once the almonds turn golden and the raisins puff up (they look so cute! .... oh and this happens really fast, so, work quickly) return the chicken with all it's accumulated juices to the pan.

Add the seasoned yogurt and stir to mix evenly. Cover the pan and simmer on low heat for about 20 mins, stirring once or twice in between.

Remove the lid, turn the heat up and cook until the liquid is reduced and just clings to the chicken pieces. Turn the chicken over to coat evenly with the sauce.

Serve over fluffy white rice or with some damper bread.

* Note: If you can figure out which are the almonds/raisins and which are the spices, remove them for easier eating. I didn't enjoy biting into those cloves ... reminds me of the dentist. :{

Otherwise, this was a super delumpcious dish!