Chicken Jalfrezi

I had never cooked Indian food but a new found cheap rack cookbook piqued my interest. This is the first of four recipes I tried. It takes a while to chop up all these veggies but it is worth the effort. I think this is a good meal to cook with a friend. So pop the cork on a bottle of wine, turn on some music, and start chopping!

Chicken Jalfrezi

Serves 4-6

4 Tablespoons ghee*

8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, sliced

1 large onion, chopped

2 tablespoons garlic and ginger paste

2 green bell peppers, cored, seeded, and chopped

1 large fresh green chile, seeded and finely chopped

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon salt

14 oz. canned chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup water

chopped fresh cilantro

Melt half the ghee in a wok or large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken pieces and stir around for 5 minutes, until browned but not necessarily cooked through, then remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Melt the remaining ghee in the pan. Add the onion and sauté, stirring frequently, for 5-8 minutes, until golden brown. Stir in the garlic and ginger paste and continue sautéing for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the green bell peppers to the pan and stir around for 2 minutes.

Stir in the chile, cumin, coriander, chili powder, turmeric, and salt. Add the tomatoes with their juice and the water and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to low, add the chicken, and let simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the bell peppers are tender, the chicken is cooked through, and the juices run clear if you pierce a few pieces with the tip of a knife. Sprinkle with the chopped cilantro.

Serve over basmati rice.

To make ghee: Melt one pound of unsalted butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. As the butter melts it will begin to boil and separate (white froth on top with sediment settling to the bottom of the pan). Reduce heat and keep the butter boiling steadily. Do not stir. Allow the butter to continue to cook for about 20 minutes. The bubbling noise will quiet down and the sediment at the bottom of the pan will turn golden brown and the the liquid under the froth will turn an amber color. Remove pan from the burner and let the cooked ghee cool for half an hour. Line a strainer with some cheese cloth and strain the ghee into a heatproof bowl. Discard the sediment . The ghee will harden as it cools.