Garam masala is a spice blend, readily available in supermarkets, made from a mixture of cumin, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, mace, cardamom and bay leaf. This ingredient is so versatile and is a great thing to have in your store cupboard. It can be used in a variety of Indian recipes, such as our Lamb Rogan Josh with Yello Dhal, and works wonderfully in a dressing to give your salad extra depth of flavour.
Spice up this week’s chicken dinner with our recipe for spicy chicken with crispy red onions.
HOW TO MAKE SPICY CHICKEN WITH CRISPY RED ONIONS
Ingredients
- 1tbsp coriander seeds
- 1tbsp mustard seeds
- 1tsp chilli flakes
- 75g natural yogurt
- 1tbsp garam masala
- 8-12 chicken thighs (depending on size), bone in and skin on
- 4 red onions, thinly sliced
- oil, for shallow frying
Method
Put the seeds and chilli into a hot, dry frying pan for a few mins, then crush in a mortar and pestle.
Mix together the yogurt and garam masala, then add the seed mix. Rub it into the chicken. You can now leave it in the fridge, covered, to marinate for a few hours or overnight. Shallow fry the onions in batches until crispy. You can reheat them in the oven later if you need to or do this while the chicken is in the oven.
Heat the oven to 180C, gas 4. Line a shallow roasting tin with oiled foil. Arrange the chicken and any marinade in a single layer. Sprinkle with sea salt and bake for 40 mins or until cooked through and crispy.
Serve with the onions. We also like it with pilau rice, a yogurt dip with spring onions and mint, and a tomato salad with red onions and a little chilli.
