Almost exactly a year ago, I got bitten by the Indian cooking bug. Since then, I’ve been cooking up various vegetable dals on a pretty regular basis. So when Grapefruit of the blog Needful Things announced that she was starting a monthly Currypalooza event, I was very excited to participate. Then life happened for a few months – my arsenal of Indian spices were all packed away and I couldn’t get to them, I had insanely busy weeks juggling houseguests, job interviews, and deadlines, but now that we’re finally settled in the new apartment and have a little time to breathe (thank you, vacation!) I’m pleased to be able to play along in this month’s Currypalooza. The dish in question? Madhur Jaffrey’s Cardamom and Black Pepper Chicken.
The recipe was delightfully quick – prepare a marinade for the chicken, let it sit while preparing the rest of the sauce, throw it in the sauce, marinade and all, and let it finish cooking. I deviated from the recipe a bit, because I wasn’t sure how or why I should grate a tomato, so I just chopped one up. Other than that, I was unusually faithful. Grapefruit will be posting the recipe on her blog, and as soon as she does, I’ll put in the link. And here it is!
What to serve with a saucy Indian chicken dish? The obvious answer is probably rice, but Nick and I had already eaten rice at lunch that day. Or naan, but it was a little too close to dinnertime to start kneading and proofing dough. I didn’t feel like getting two pots dirty to make lentils, and I definitely wanted a vegetable component to the meal. Mallika and her wonderful Quick Indian Cooking blog to the rescue! There I found a delectable recipe for Masala Mattar, a spicy side dish featuring peas. The two dishes worked well together, and I even got to have some of the leftover chicken for lunch the next day. The peas were all gone, so that time, I made rice.
On this day in 2008: Get Confident, Stupid!
Originally published on Croque-Camille.
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Oh, Camille! I adore Indian food! And that it is also “delighfully quick” is an excellent thing!
Hooray for Currypalooza! And woman, you need to get yourself on twitter. Seriously. Selfishly, *I* want you there!
thanks for solving our dinner quandary. And so deliciously.
Thanks for cooking along this week! Your chicken looks great & I didn’t quite get the bit about grating tomato either so I put in some finely chopped one!
Your cardamom and black pepper chicken looks scrumptious. I’m glad you joined us and hope to see you back next month. Ditto, chopping the tomato rather than “grating” it.
Just as you got bitten by the Indian cooking bug, I’ve recently been bitten by the cardamom bug *and* the pea bug, so this recipe looks swoontastic to me!
onlinepastrychef – And I made sure to use happy chicken, too. Twitter…peer pressure…
Mom – You’re welcome! Hope you like it!
Grapefruit – Glad to hear I’m not the only one!
Rocquie – Thanks, I’m already looking forward to next month!
Hannah – Hooray! And here’s a secret – I used frozen peas, so you can make this one any time of year. Shhhh…
Your chicken and peas look yummy! I love Indian foods and eat in a local Indian (very good too) restaurant at least once a week.
I’m so glad you’ve joined us for Curry Palooza. Both your chicken and pea dishes look fab! I’d love to give that Masala Mattar recipe a try. I’ve encountered recipes for Mexican food that called for grating a tomato, but I had no fresh tomatoes on hand, so chopped up a canned Italian tomato.
I love the combination of spices! I’m still hooked on Mallika’s recipes from her blog and book, but I hope to give Madhur Jaffrey a try soon. Thanks for the inspiration!
Saving this one….delicious, xv.
Over at stone soup, Jules is suggesting that we “rice” cauliflower. It might be a lighter accompaniment. (if I spelled that right)
Michel – Since I learned to cook Indian food, we hardly ever go out for it any more, which is both good and bad, I guess…
Margie – You should! It was spicy and delicious.
Ann – I know what you mean, I love the simplicity of Mallika’s recipes, too. But this one was totally non-intimidating.
Vicki – It was!
Tammy – Love cauliflower, but I really can’t wait for ten years from now, when they tell us rice is a perfectly fine thing to eat.
I thought I’d already commented on this….it sounds fantastic. As evidenced by my own most recent post, I am a cardamom lover. And I need more experience making curries (since I do love to eat them). Thanks for posting this!
hungry dog – Let me know if you want to play along in next month’s currypalooza. Indian food has become one of my favorite cuisines to cook at home!
Looks great! Madhur Jaffrey always has great recipes…looks like you made a lovely adaptation of it!
Mistress of Spices – I’m excited to learn more from her!
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Your chicken and peas look really yummy! Thanks
Emmanuel – Thank YOU!