A twist to the tale...

After cooking for over a decade most recipes tend to have a familiar ring to them. A feeling of 'been there done that' many a times. Like Chicken curries are likely to be dahi based or tomato based, pastas are cooked in white sauce, a tomato base, or just tossed around in olive oil, basic daals would either have a jeera or rai/mustard tadka and so it goes on.

YET, the mere addition of even one new ingredient or varying the proportion of the ingredient or adding it during a different stage in the cooking changes the complexion entirely. This fact gets reinforced each time I make an Indian chicken curry. Almost the same ingredients- tomato, onion, ginger, garlic, dhania powder, jeera powder, garam masala but a very different end result each time. Dhania Chicken, Elaichi Murg(refer blog) to name a few, have varied tastes. Even with the dahi based chicken dishes whether you marinate the chicken in the dahi or add whipped curd towards the last stages of cooking would impact the texture, consistency and taste. Ditto for dhania patta which when added towards the end as the garnish enhances the sensorials but when added earlier on adds to the taste and richness of the gravy.

Carribbean chicken which I cooked last week uses more or less the regular chicken curry ingredients. This is a wonderfully seasoned chicken. Although continental in terms of categorization, very Indian in taste. Jai Ho!

So ladies and gentlemen presenting...

Caribbean Chicken

Ingredients

Chicken: 800 grams

Onions: 2 large, sliced

Oil: 2tsp

Garlic paste: 2 tsp

Soya sauce: 4 tbsp

Salt: 1 tsp( go easy on the salt given that you are adding 4 tablespoon of soya sauce)

Chilli powder: 1/2 tsp. The chilli powder in combination with the soya sauce and tomato puree gives the dish a rich red color)

Tomato puree: 4/5 tbsp

Method

Heat oil in a pan and saute the onion till pink/glassy. Add the chicken and fry till the chicken changes colour. Add the garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add salt, red chilli powder,tomato puree. Cover and cook till the chicken is tender. Increase heat and thicken the sauce. Sprinkle fresh corriander leaves.

Serve hot.

This goes well with a pulao and is a convenient dish to make when you are entertaining. Likely to have a wide appeal given its Indo-western feel.

Sorry no pictures. My boys invited a friend home and together they polished it all off. I am not complaining, the proof of the chicken.

Happy cooking and Bon Apetit!

P.S: A Raindrop cake is baking as I write this post. The smell of freshly baked chocolate cake is a mood uplifter. I am starting to feel like Maria, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so sad.