Marvellous Mangalorean Chicken Curry

Hello... It's me... I am finally back from the wilderness after suffering a pretty nasty break to my wrist on Boxing Day! Hurrah! 

To celebrate my return to the kitchen, I have picked a particularly delicious dish from the south west of India. This fragrant curry is packed full of flavours but the stars of the show are definitely coconut and curry leaves. There's also an array of other spices as well as a squeeze of fresh lemon and a kick of chilli, which really liven up the flavours. To serve, I like to knock up my own flatbreads which are super simple and easy to make and really take this meal to the next level!

Magnificent Mangalorean Chicken Curry
Serves 4

For the spice paste:
30g coriander seeds 
15g cumin seeds 
5g black peppercorns 
2-3 green cardamom pods 
3 dry red chilies, seeds removed 
20g garlic (about 3-4 garlic cloves), chopped 
5g curry leaves 
75g onion (about 1 small onion), chopped 
100ml coconut milk 
For the fennel and curry leaf flatbreads: 
250g white flour 
salt, to taste 
5g curry leaves, chopped 
2 tsp crushed fennel seeds 
50g clarified butter (ghee) 
For the curry: 
50ml vegetable oil 
2 tsp mustard seeds 
10g curry leaves 
150g onion (about 1 large onion), sliced 
½ tbsp chilli powder (optional) 
600g chicken thigh, cut into 5cm/2in cubes 
250g/9oz dessicated coconut 
700ml coconut milk
1 lemon, juice only
salt

For the spice paste, toast the spices in a pan slowly over a low heat until they are fragrant. Then grind in a spice grinder, add the ground spices to a blender and blend to a fine paste with the garlic, curry leaves, onions and coconut milk. 

For the flatbread, put the flour, salt, curry leaves and fennel seeds in a mixing bowl. Mix them gently until combined. Add water in batches until you have a firm dough (use as little water as possible). Roll the dough into 8 small balls, cover and set aside to rest for 30 minutes. 

For the curry, heat the vegetable oil in a large pan. Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves and onions. Gently fry the onions until translucent, then add the red chilli powder followed by the spice paste. Cook for 15 minutes over a low heat. Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes. Stir in the dessicated coconut. Pour in the coconut milk then season with salt and lemon juice. 

When you are ready to cook the flatbread, dust a work surface with flour and roll the balls of dough out as thinly as possible with a rolling pin. Dry fry in a large pan for a few minutes on each side until cooked through. When cooked, brush both sides with clarified butter. Serve the chicken curry with fennel and curry leaf flatbreads. 

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