Chicken Arti Food

TANDOORI CHICKEN

Steps:

• To make the marinade, toast the cloves, whole chiles, both types of cardamom seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds and fenugreek seeds in a cast-iron skillet until fragrant, 3 minutes or so, shaking the pan. Then, pour the spices into a spice grinder and grind them until you get a fine powder.
• In large bowl, whisk together the spice mixture you just made with the yogurt, oil, malt vinegar, salt, ground cinnamon, paprika, turmeric, cayenne pepper, garlic and ginger until well combined. It should smell amazing! Taste and adjust with more salt if it needs it.
• Reserve 1/3 cup of the marinade and set aside; you're going to make a sauce out of this reserved marinade.
• Prick the chicken thighs with a fork. Add the thighs to the rest of the marinade, and toss to coat. Marinate at least 1 hour in the fridge, and at most overnight.
• When you're ready to cook, line a baking sheet with foil, and turn your broiler on. Place each chicken thigh on the baking sheet, making sure each one is coated with the marinade, but isn't swimming in it. Cook the chicken thighs under the broiler until starting to blacken, about 5 minutes. Then turn the oven to 350, and cook until a meat thermometer inserted in the meatiest part of the thigh registers 160 degrees F, another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven.
• While the chicken is cooking, pour the reserved marinade into a small saucepan, along with 1/2 cup water and the honey. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-low heat, whisking all the time. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and pour into a small bowl or gravy boat for serving.
• Serve the chicken thighs on a platter with a fresh squeeze of lime and a drizzle of the sauce.

CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA

Steps:

• For the marinade: In a large bowl, mix together the marinade ingredients. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Marinate at least 30 minutes, or in the refrigerator up to overnight.
• For the sauce: When you're ready to make the curry, place a large skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil and butter. When the butter has melted, add the Ginger-Garlic Paste and serrano peppers. Saute until lightly browned around the edges. Add the tomato paste and cook until the tomato has darkened in color, about 3 minutes. Add the garam masala and the paprika and saute for about 1 minute to draw out their flavors.
• Add the tomatoes, salt, and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook until thickened, about 20 minutes. You may need more water depending on how much liquid the tomatoes give off.
• Meanwhile, fire up your grill. When it is nice and hot, lightly brush it with oil. Place the chicken on the grill, shaking off some of the excess marinade. Cook until it's charred, about 2 minutes on each side. (Don't worry that the chicken will still be a little uncooked, it finishes cooking in the sauce).
• Pour the sauce into a blender or food processor, or use an immersion blender, and process until smooth. Pour back into the skillet and bring back up to a boil. Add the chicken and fenugreek leaves, if using. Take the heat down to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the cream and stir through. Garnish with minced fresh cilantro, and serve over rice, with naan, or a crusty piece of bread!
• Throw the garlic, ginger, and canola oil in a mini-food processor and let it go until it forms a semi-smooth paste. There will still be tiny little pieces in there, but overall, it should resemble a paste.
• Save what you don't use in a small glass jar. It should last in the fridge for 2 to 3 weeks. It's a delicious addition to marinades, pasta sauces, stir fry sauces, slow-cooker recipes, gravy etc. We always had a jar of this stuff in our fridge growing up.

CHICKEN ARTI

Steps:

• Saute garlic in olive oil.
• Add butter, hot sauce and lemon juice.
• Heat and set aside.
• Place chicken in baking dish and sprinkle basil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste.
• Pour sauce over chicken and bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes, or until chicken is cooked thoroughly.
• Serve with side of fresh green beans, and wild rice.

AARTI'S EASY TANDOORI CHICKEN

Steps:

• Toss the chicken breasts in 1 cup tandoori marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to overnight.
• In a saute pan, heat the vegetable oil, and cook the chicken for about 7 minutes per side, until cooked through. Alternately, you can also grill the chicken. Remove the chicken from the pan and pour the remaining 1 cup of marinade into the pan and bring to a gentle simmer. Stir in the honey and turn off the heat. Toss the salad greens with some olive oil, a squirt of lemon juice and salt, and pepper, to taste. Serve each chicken breast over a bed of greens and top with the heated tandoori sauce.
• To make the Marinade:
• Put the chiles, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds, cloves, seeds from cardamom pods (Cook's Note: Crush the pods to open, remove the seeds and throw away the hulls.), paprika, and cinnamon in a saute pan over medium heat until fragrant and toasty, about 5 minutes. Stir to avoid burning. Pour the mixture into a coffee or spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.
• Throw the garlic and ginger into a food processor or blender and pulse until finely minced, then add the yogurt, oil, and lime juice. Process the mixture until as smooth as possible. Add the spice powder and process again. Season the mixture with salt, and pepper, to taste. Keep the marinade in the refrigerator until ready to use.

CHICKEN AND ARTICHOKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper and paprika to taste. Melt butter or margarine in heavy skillet and brown chicken on all sides. Remove to covered 9x13 inch casserole.
• Add mushrooms to pan drippings and saute. Add flour and gradually add stock or broth and sherry. Season with rosemary; deglaze skillet.
• Arrange artichoke hearts among the chicken pieces and pour sauce over all. Cover and bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 40 minutes or until tender.

GREEN CHICKEN CURRY (FOOD NETWORK STAR - AARTI)

Steps:

• In a food processor, puree the cilantro, mint, red onion, ginger, salt, and pepper. Puree on high until smooth. While the processor is running, add 1/4 cup water and blend until the mixture is a thick paste. Set aside.
• In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring often, until golden brown.
• Add the spices and cook for 30 seconds.
• Add the cilantro puree to the pot and cook, stirring often until it deepens in color and aroma. It should look shiny, and little droplets of oil will appear on the surface.
• Add the chicken, coating each piece in the puree and stirring often. Continue to cook for 5 minutes, so the puree adheres to the chicken.
• Add 1 1/2 cups water, or just enough to cover the chicken, and add the vinegar. Bring to a boil, and reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the chicken is tender and sauce has slightly thickened, about 20 to 25 minutes.
• Remove the pot from heat and swirl in the yogurt. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
• Serve over basmati rice or naan bread.