mellow yellow

So, I was really excited about making chicken cashew curry. It was really very good. I do not have a lot of experience making curry anything; this type of cooking is always an adventure for me. The end result was tasty -- mellow, smoky, and shockingly yellow! There are random bright yellow stains on my kitchen counters still. I refuse to clean with bleach. Eventually, the yellow will come out of there.

I borrowed heavily from Nigella Lawson's recipe for the same from her cookbook Forever Summer... well, I guess I borrowed heavily but in looking at the original recipe, I think I made more changes than not.

Chicken cashew curry

3 tablespoons peanut oil
2 small onions, finely chopped
salt
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Serrano chilies, seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
5 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bit-sized pieces
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup cashew nuts, heaping
3 tablespoons full fat yogurt

Heat oil in a wide saucepan and fry the onions gently, sprinkled with a little salt to stop them burning, until softened and then add the garlic, chilies, turmeric, cumin, ginger, cardamom, and coriander and cook,stirring, for another minute or so. Remove the onions from the pan. Salt the chicken well and brown on all sides over high heat. Remove from the pan. Add the onions back in and then the chicken stock. Bring to a simmer and add the chicken back in with any accumulated juices. Simmer gently for about 10 minutes or until the chicken is just about cooked through. Check the seasoning and add the peas, cooking for another 5 minutes or so. Add the cream to the curry and simmer until thickened, about 5-8 minutes. Toast the cashew nuts in a dry frying pan until colored a little, then tip in the cashew nuts into the chicken mixture.

I served this with a spoonful of the yogurt over basmati rice and naan. It was rather good but I think next time, I will make it a bit hotter in flavor.