Name: Methi Chicken
Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients: 4 Tbsp. vegetable oil; 2 onions, thinly sliced into half moons; 1 1-inch (2.5 cm) piece of cassia bark; 2 green cardamom pods; 1 clove garlic; 1 Indian bay leaf (tej patta); 2 dried red chiles; 2 pounds 3 ounces (1 kg) boneless skinless chicken thighs; 2–2½ inch (5–6 cm) piece of fresh ginger, grated; 3 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 tsp. ground turmeric; 1 Tbsp. ground coriander; Scant 1 cup (200 g) full-fat Greek-style yogurt; 1 tsp. dried fenugreek leaves (kasur methi); 1 tsp. salt; 1 tsp. chile powder; 4 Tbsp. tomato paste; ½ tsp. sugar; 4 Tbsp. heavy cream (do add if you can!); Handful of fresh cilantro leaves

Methi chicken—Indian chicken flavored with fenugreek—on two jadecolored plates and a flowered tablecloth.

Photo by Laura Edwards

The earthy flavor of dried fenugreek gives this chicken dish its distinctive flavor. The base is a rich combination of yogurt and tomato. This is a great dish to cook when entertaining if there is no room to seat a lot of people, as the boneless chicken thighs make it easy for people to stand to eat and not need to use a knife. When my mother wanted to be a bit more indulgent, she would add a big dollop of white unsalted butter and a drizzle of thick cream. Feel free to add that extra touch to this dish. The beautiful orange-red gravy goes really well with a rice pulao.

This recipe was excerpted from 'Ammu' by Asma Khan. Buy the full book on Amazon. This book was selected as one of the best cookbooks of 2022.

Recipe notes

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