Cashew Chicken

Cashew nuts and chicken is a good combination. I have always wanted to make a dish with these two and most of the dishes that came to my mind were Chinese.

I came to know about this Maharashtrian dish called Kaju Chicken in Kaala Masala and I had give it a go but then again I gave my own twist to this curry. 

Kaala (black) Masala is a Mahrashtrian take on the garam masala with the addition of coriander seeds and cumin.

Ingredients

• 1/2 kg boneless chicken, cubed
• 50 g grated coconut/ 1 cup coconut milk
• 1.5 tsp of  ginger-garlic paste
• 1.5 tsp of coriander seeds
• 1 tsp of cumin seeds
• 2 whole dried red chillies (add more for spiceness)
• 3 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon stick
• 50-75 gm cashew nuts
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 2 Tbsp of ghee
• salt to taste

Preparations

• In a frying pan, without any oil, roast the grated coconut(if using),coriander seeds, cumin seeds, red chillies, cloves and cinnamon over a low heat.
• After 2-3 mins, add 25 gm of cashew nuts & onion and roast  for a further 5 -7 mins, stirring all the time. 
• Turn off heat and leave to cool. Grind the mixture along with ginger-garlic paste in a blender by adding coconut milk (if not using grated coconut) or water till it becomes a smooth and fine paste. 
• Grind separately 25 gm of cashew nuts with a little water to make a fine paste.
• Heat ghee in a cooking pot, add the ground spice mixture and fry for 5 mins over a low heat. Add the ground cashew nuts and salt to taste and fry for a further 2-3 mins.
• Add the chicken pieces, turn up the heat to moderate and fry for 5 mins. Add the remaining coconut milk(if using) and 1/2 cup of water. Else 1.5 cups of water
• Cook over low heat for 10 minutes covered. After that remove the lid and cook till chicken is done.
• In the mean time, take the remaining cashew nuts and fry them in ghee till brown. 
• Once the chicken is cooked, garnish it with the fried cashew nuts. 

This is a very mild curry and ideal for those averse to spicy food.  This will be a big hit in the family both for the adults and kids. This dish will go with rice as well as roti.