Prajakta's Achari Chicken

This South Asian chicken curry starts with a whole handful of whole spices: mustard, cumin, fennel, fenugreek, and nigella seeds--that crackle in hot oil before the chicken goes in. The result is a rich, deeply aromatic gravy brightened with Kashmiri chilli, tangy yogurt, and lemon. Serve it with steamed rice or roti to soak up every last bit of sauce.

Ingredients

1 ½ lb. bone in chicken, skin removed, cut into pieces
3 tablespoons neutral oil
1 teaspoon Bindu Black Mustard
1 teaspoon Jodhana Cumin
1 teaspoon Hariyali Fennel
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
½ teaspoon nigella seed or onion seeds
4 dried red byadgi chillies
1 large white onion, finely sliced
2 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
1 ½ tablespoon tomato puree
½ teaspoon Pragati Turmeric
2 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
⅔ cup plain greek yogurt, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1½ teaspoon kosher salt
Chopped coriander to garnish

Methods

To a large pot set over medium heat, add the oil, mustard seeds, cumin, fennel, fenugreek and nigella seeds. Stir until they begin to crackle and pop, around 2 minutes. Add the dried red chillies and stir for 30 seconds, the chillies will swell slightly.
Stir in the sliced onion and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 8-10 minutes.
Lower the heat to low, and stir in the ginger-garlic paste. Once fragrant, stir in the tomato puree, turmeric and chilli powder, for 30 seconds, to allow blooming. Stir in 2 tablespoons of water to ensure the mixture doesn’t burn. Increase the heat to medium and keep stirring until the oil begins to separate, 2-3 minutes.
Add the chicken, and stir to coat well in the spices, and cook until the oil continues to separate out, 5-7 minutes.
Stir in 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce to heat to low and cook until the chicken is tender, 20-30 minutes.
Increase the heat to medium, add a few tablespoons of the gravy to the yogurt to help temper it, and add to chicken, stirring continuously to make sure the yogurt is well-combined. Lower the heat to low, cover and cook until everything is well combined, the gravy is bright red, and the oil is separated, 5-7 minutes.
Uncover, add salt, lemon juice, and garnish with coriander.
Serve with steamed rice or roti.