Royal Chicken Cooked in Yoghurt (Madhur Jaffrey)

Tempo

50 min

Picante

Dificuldade

Médio

Rende

4porções

Ingredientes

250 ml

natural yogurt (iogurte natural integral)

1 tsp

salt (split: half for yogurt, half for chicken)

½ tsp

freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp

ground cumin (cominho)

1 tsp

ground coriander (coentro em pó)

¼ tsp

chilli powder (more to taste)

4 tbsp

finely chopped fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)

1½ kg

frango (whole chicken, jointed by butcher into ~8 serving portions)

4 tbsp

vegetable oil (split: 4 tbsp for browning, optional more)

cardamom pods (cardamomo verde)

cloves (cravo-da-índia)

cm cinnamon stick (canela em pau)

bay leaves (folhas de louro)

2½ tbsp

blanched slivered almonds (amêndoas em lascas)

2½ tbsp

sultanas / golden raisins (uvas-passas claras)

Modo de preparo

01**Whisk the yogurt smooth** in a bowl. Add half the salt, the pepper, cumin, coriander, chilli powder, and chopped fresh coriander. Mix; set aside.
02**Salt the chicken pieces** with the remaining salt + a grind of pepper.
03**Heat oil** in a wide, preferably non-stick pan (or PCC20 inner bowl on P5 Refogar). When hot, add cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon stick, bay leaves. Stir once — they should sputter and become fragrant.
04**Brown chicken** in batches, single layer only. Both sides golden. Move to a bowl as each batch finishes.
05**Toast almonds + sultanas** in the same hot oil — they'll go quickly: almonds golden, sultanas plump. ~30 sec.
06**Return chicken** + accumulated juices to the pan. Add the seasoned yogurt. Stir to coat; bring to a gentle simmer. **Cover, low heat, 20 min.** Stir once or twice.
07**Reduce.** Uncover, raise heat slightly, **reduce sauce until it just clings** to the chicken pieces. Turn chicken gently to coat. Sauce should be thick, not soupy.

Royal Chicken Cooked in Yoghurt (Madhur Jaffrey)

A Mughlai classic — chicken braised in spiced yogurt with almonds and sultanas. Elegant enough for company, easy enough for a Tuesday. The yogurt reduces to a thick clinging sauce; no flour, no cream.

Heat: 1/5. Adjust with chilli powder (recipe is forgiving).

Notes

Whole spices stay whole — Jaffrey's note: "the large, whole spices are not meant to be eaten." Pluck out the cinnamon stick before serving. Cardamom pods, cloves, bay can stay; diners will know.
Yogurt curdling: beat yogurt smooth before adding, and stir the pan gently as it comes up to a simmer. A grain of cornstarch (1/2 tsp) added to the marinade helps if the yogurt is thin.
PCC20 use: P5 Refogar's 30 min is fine for browning + start of simmer. Cancel after browning and use manual heat for the 20 min covered simmer to keep it gentle.
Serving: basmati rice. A simple cucumber raita on the side.
Freezer: freezes well. Whole spices remain potent on reheat — fish out cinnamon stick before freezing.