Chicken dopiaza

Forget the takeaway and make this chicken curry at home. Serve with your favourite sides for an Indian feast

Ingredients

• 3 chicken legs , bone-in, skin removed
• 3 chicken thighs , bone-in, skin removed
• 3 ginger , half grated, half cut into strips to serve
• 4 garlic cloves , finely grated
• 2 star anise
• 1 black cardamom pod
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp coriander seeds , crushed using a pestle and mortar
• 3 green cardamom pods
• 0.5 tsp black peppercorns
• 2 dried red chillies
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 cinnamon stick
• 6 red onions , roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp full-fat yogurt
• 2 tbsp ghee (or 1 tbsp vegetable oil and 1 tbsp unsalted butter)
• 0.5 tsp turmeric
• 0.5 tsp freshly ground pepper
• fresh coriander leaves , chopped
• 1 green chilli , finely chopped
• 0.5 tsp garam masala
• 0.5 lime

Steps

1. Put the chicken, grated ginger, garlic, star anise, black cardamom, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, green cardamom, black peppercorns, dried red chillies, bay leaf, cinnamon stick and half the chopped onions in a wok or large frying pan over a medium heat. If it becomes too dry, add a little water (no more than 4 tbsp). Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is almost cooked through.
2. Add the yogurt and stir-fry on a high heat until the yogurt dries up. Now add the ghee (or oil and butter) and, when hot, add the remaining onions, turmeric, freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste.
3. Continue to cook over a high heat until the sauce is dryish and the second half of the onions are nearly soft (although be careful not to overcook).
4. Garnish with the ginger strips, fresh coriander, green chilli, garam masala and a squeeze of lime juice. Serve immediately.