How to Cook Murg Adraki

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 30 mins

Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients needed to make Murg Adraki:

For the chutney:

• 3 2/3 oz tamarind paste
• 7 oz fresh ginger, thinly sliced
• 5-6 fresh curry leaves
• 1 green chili, slitted
• 1 dried red chili
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• 2 tsp sesame seeds
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• Pinch of asafoetida
• 3 ½ oz palm sugar
• Salt to taste
• 2 ½ oz rapeseed oil

For the chicken:

• 10 ½ oz chicken breasts, minced
• 4 chicken breasts, skin on
• 13/4 pint chicken stock
• 2 tbsp ginger, finely chopped
• 1 spring onion, chopped
• Pinch of garam masala powder
• Salt to taste
• Vegetable oil, for frying

For the sauce:

• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 1 ¾ oz fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped
• 1 green chili, slitted
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil

To serve:

• Fresh ginger, julienned and fried until crispy

Cooking instructions for Murg Adraki:

• To make the chutney, drizzle a couple of tbsp oil in a skillet and throw in the cumin seeds once the oil heats up.
• Fry them for a couple of minutes and stir in the sesame seeds, green chili and ginger, followed by a dash of salt to season.
• Continue to stir fry them for another couple of minutes and place a lid on top to cook for about 40 minutes at slowest heat, until the ginger is cooked through.
• Tip the mixture into a food processor and pulse them into a fine paste.
• Spoon in the palm sugar and tamarind paste into the food processor and blitz further until they blend together to form a uniform paste.
• Drizzle rest of the oil in another skillet and heat until it shimmers.
• Throw in the mustard seeds, red chili and the asafoetida and stir fry briefly for half a minute or until the mustard seeds begin to splutter.
• Drizzle it into the above paste and stir them together to mix well.
• Spoon the mixture into a small bowl and set aside.
• To cook the chicken, sandwich each chicken breast between two sheets of cling film and pound it with a meat mallet to flatten it out.
• Place the minced chicken in a bowl and stir in the ginger, spring onion and a dash each of garam masala and salt until well combined.
• Split the mixture into 4 equal parts and place each of it at the centre of the flattened chicken breast.
• Roll the chicken breast tightly into a cylinder, using the cling film and twist either ends of the sheet to tighten it up and tie them in a knot.
• Simmer the chicken broth in a pot and drop in the roulades to poach for half an hour or until the meat ic cooked through.
• Drain them out onto a plate and set aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, to make the sauce, heat a lashing of oil in a saucepan and stir fry the ginger as well as cumin seeds for about 2 minutes or until the seeds start popping.
• Throw in the chopped onions plus green chili and sauté further for another couple of minutes or until the onions caramelize.
• Stir in the spices and cook further for another 2-3 minutes.
• Stir in the tomatoes, followed by a dash of salt to season and cook until the tomatoes soften.
• Tip the mixture into a food processor and pulse them into a fine puree; set aside and keep warm.
• For serving, slice each roulade into 3 equal portions and spread the chutney across the centre of each serving plate.
• Arrange the chicken roulade on top and drizzle the sauce over them.
• Sprinkle the crisp-fried ginger over the chicken and serve right away.

 Image credit: Wikimedia Commons