Chicken Rezala Curry Recipe
A chicken rezala is a delicious Bengali dish which is often referred to as a "white curry", it is highly fragrant that is flavoured and thickened with white poppy seeds and cashew nuts, and my version is finished with a little saffron.
Servings 2 Servings
Calories 652kcal
Ingredients
For the Boiled Onion Puree:
- 1 Large Onion 250g
- 175 ml Water ¾ Cup
- 2 Cloves
- 1 Bay Leaf
For the Poppy Seed and Cashew Paste:
- 1½ tablespoon White Poppy Seeds
- 1 tablespoon Cashew Nuts
- 50 ml Boiling Water 3 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon
For the Spice Mix:
- 1 Blade Mace
- 50 mm Cassia Bark 2" Length
- 2 Green Cardamom Pods
- 1 Black Cardamom Pod
- 1 teaspoon Black Cumin Seeds
- 1 teaspoon Black Peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon Coriander Seeds
For the Chicken:
- 4 Skinless (Bone In) Chicken Drumsticks 500g Total
- 4 Garlic Cloves
- 15 g Ginger ½ Thumb-Sized Piece
- 4 Green Finger Chilli Peppers
- ½ teaspoon Salt Plus an Extra Pinch to Pound the Garlic and Ginger
- 250 g Natural Yoghurt 1 Cup (Full fat)
- 125 ml Water ½ Cup
- 2 tablespoon Ghee
- 2 tablespoon Milk Optional
- 1 Pinch Saffron Optional
Instructions
- Peel and roughly chop the onion and place it in a 15cm saucepan with the water, cloves and bay leaf. Bring this to a boil and then cook on a rolling boil for 10 minutes.
- Remove, cool and blitz or pound in a pestle and mortar, making sure you remove the bay leaf and cloves before blending.
- Place the white poppy seeds and cashew nuts in a small bowl, pour over the boiling water and allow them to sit for 10 minutes, then either pound to a paste in a pestle and mortar or blitz in a mini blender.
- Heat a 20cm or 8" saucepan over a medium-high heat, toss in all of the ingredients for the spice mix and toast them until they become fragrant, then grind them to a fine powder.
- Peel and roughly chop the garlic cloves and ginger, toss them into a pestle and mortar with a pinch of salt and pound them to a paste.
- Pierce the chilli peppers 5-6 times with the tip of a paring knife.
- Season the chicken drumsticks with the salt.
- Return the 20cm (8") saucepan you used to toast the spices to a medium-high heat and add the ghee. When the ghee has melted and is hot, sear the chicken drumsticks on all sides for 3-4 minutes, then remove and set aside.
- Reduce the heat under the pan to medium and add the chilli peppers, garlic and ginger paste, cook for 1 minute.
- Sprinkle in the spice mix from step 3 and stir to coat the spices in the oil, then add the boiled onion puree and cook for 2 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Pour in the water and add the poppy seed and cashew paste, give everything a stir, return the chicken and bring this mix to a boil.
- Take a few tablespoons of the sauce from the pan and stir it through the yoghurt to temper it, then add the tempered yoghurt to the pan, reduce the heat to low and cook for 35-40 minutes.
- If you are adding the saffron, heat the milk (a microwave is the easiest way to do this), add the saffron, leave it to sit for a couple of minutes, then pour it into the curry, stir and cook for a final 2-3 minutes. You should time this phase so that it all happens at the end of the 35-40 minute cooking time.
- I like to remove the chicken and blend the sauce before serving. This is optional, but it leads to the most beautiful, silky smooth sauce.
Video
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 652kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 59g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 291mg | Sodium: 978mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 20g
