Chicken Saag Chicken And Spinach Curry Food

CHICKEN SAAG (INDIAN SPINACH CHICKEN CURRY)

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk to thoroughly combine Spice Mix ingredients: garam masala, turmeric, cumin, cardamom, coriander, brown sugar, cayenne (optional), salt, and pepper. Set aside.
• Season chopped chicken with 3 teaspoons of the prepared Spice Mix. Set seasoned chicken aside. Reserve the remaining Spice Mix.
• Heat large, heavy skillet over MEDIUM heat (or MEDIUM-LOW, depending on your stovetop). Add olive oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the skillet. Add chopped onion to pan and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent; about 5-6 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, and jalapeño. Stir and cook two minutes.
• Add chicken and cook, stirring almost constantly, until chicken is "almost" done. Chicken can still be pink in places, but should generally look like it's getting closer to done.
• Sprinkle remaining spice mix over the top of the cooked chicken. Cook and stir 1 minute.
• Stir in half-and-half, mixing to combine ingredients evenly. Reduce heat to LOW-LOW. Simmer chicken mixture uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add spinach to chicken mixture.Fresh Spinach: Add spinach a handful at a time, stirring it in as it begins to wilt. Frozen Spinach: If you are using frozen spinach, do not defrost the spinach first. Just add it all at the same time, and allow it to defrost in the heat of the sauce.
• Remove chicken mixture from heat. OPTIONAL: Stir in plain yogurt at this time if you are using it. Yogurt will give the curry a slightly tangy flavor. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to chicken mixture, stirring it in to melt.

CHICKEN SAAG (CHICKEN AND SPINACH CURRY)

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat (if you plan to double the recipe, definitely use a pot instead of a skillet so you have room for all the spinach!). Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and saute until softened, about 4 to 5 minutes, stirring regularly, and lowering heat to medium-low if it starts to brown too quickly.
• Over medium heat, add the salt, coriander, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, cardamom, and chili powder, and stir on medium-low heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds or so. Dissolve the tomato paste in the water by stirring vigorously together in a measuring cup or bowl. Then stir into the spices in the pan, creating a thick spiced sauce, about 1 minute.
• Add the spinach and gently stir to combine, as the skillet will be very full. Cover and raise the heat to medium-high, allowing the spinach to start to wilt. Occasionally remove the lid, stir, and then cover again until most the spinach has begun to wilt, about 3 to 5 minutes (can depend on the size of your spinach leaves). Remove the lid and finish stirring the spinach until it is completely wilted but still bright green, another minute.
• Transfer spinach mixture to a blender and puree until relatively smooth but still a bit chunky (you don't want it to be super smooth, a bit of texture is good). Taste and adjust salt and spice if necessary.
• Meanwhile, wipe the skillet clean with a paper towel, return it to medium-high heat, and add 1 tablespoon of oil. When the oil is hot, add the cubed chicken pieces, sprinkle salt over the top to season, and cook until almost completely cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Pour the spinach mixture back over the chicken, using a rubber spatula to get every last bit out of the blender, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes to allow the flavors to meld and the chicken to finish cooking. Stir in the yogurt, and serve immediately with basmati rice and/or naan.

CHICKEN SAAG

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and fry the chicken pieces until browned, about 8 minutes per side. Set the chicken aside.
• Place the spinach into a large pot with 1/4 cup of water, bring to a boil, cover the pan, and remove from heat. Allow the spinach to steam for about 10 minutes, then place into a blender, and blend until very finely chopped. Set the spinach aside.
• Place the onions, garlic, and ginger into the skillet, and fry over medium heat, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Pour in the tomatoes, ground coriander, cayenne pepper, turmeric, cardamom, cloves, and salt; stir in 1 tablespoon water, and cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes. Pour in the milk, stir to combine, and return the chicken pieces to the skillet. Bring the mixture to a simmer, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 20 minutes. Stir the spinach and garam masala into the skillet, and cook until the spinach starts to stick to the pan, about 15 minutes.
• Stir in sour cream, and bring the mixture just to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in butter.