Main plate Turmeric chicken & rice, home made curry powder

[Bert2368]

Couldn't get to sleep last night so I made a new (to me) spice mix and cooked about 5.8 lb. of bone in chicken thighs.

I started with the below recipe for curry powder but made the following changes:

1: Substituted a couple of thumb sized smoked red jalapenos ("chipotles morita", I de stemmed and coarse chopped these before toasting) for the "4 small red dried chilis". Added a large dried bay leaf along with the 4 curry leaves.

2: Left out the fenugreek, as none on hand and after stores all closed. Left out the salt, because, why add salt? One can always add it to the dish in process after determining a need for it. I've never used fenugreek in cooking, except possibly included in commercially prepared curry powders, so I'm not sure what notes I might be missing.

Toasted the seeds and leaves for about 5 minutes in a heavy sauce pan constantly sirring, then let cool on a plate. Ground in a cleaned out coffee mill, added the other pre ground spices after grinding the toasted seeds & leaves.

Didn't change chicken recipe by much except to increase quantities of chicken, onion, garlic and ginger.

Fried the powdered turmeric in butter, then added the chicken thighs, skin side down. Browned thighs for about 5 minutes, then flipped and browned other side. Removed chicken to plate, sauteed the onions, garlic & fresh ginger, added tomatoes and tried to deglaze pan. Added rice, rest of spices. A little low on liquids to deglaze pan, plus batch size was going to exceed the deep frying pan, so transferred all to a medium stock pot with a heavy bottom, used some of the chicken stock to successfully deglaze saute pan & added that all to the bigger pot as well. Placed the browned chicken pieces on top of rice skin side up, added the remaining 3 cups or so of chicken stock hot and simmered pot covered for 10 minutes, then partially covered for 15 more. Removed chicken to debone & slice up, let the rice/veggies sit for about 5 more minutes. Added the cut up chicken back before serving.

As it came out, it was tasty but only slightly "warm". I would use more chilis or even add cayenne to the curry powder and/or dish next time if it was just for me. I added plain Greek yogurt to my bowl, a few chopped up mint leaves, juice of a quarter lime and topped with a small cucumber chopped up . All good... But it could be hotter?

I added a couple of tablespoons of Sambal Olek fresh chili paste to the large bowl of chicken & rice after tasting in an attempt to show the 2nd round of Covid vaccine that I CAN KICK MY BODY IN THE ASS HARDER THAN YOU CAN. Which I did, after dinner I went out and sat under the stars in 50°F weather wearing a short sleeve shirt until I quit sweating, definitely wasn't thinking about my sore muscles anymore!

No pictures, I was a bit out of it while cooking and then started shoveling it in too fast for a glamour shot after plating. Will definitely make this again-

Links to original recipes:

BEST Curry Powder

The ultimate homemade curry powder recipe, this blend is an absolute feast for the senses and beats anything you'll find at the store!

www.daringgourmet.com

Turmeric Chicken and Rice Recipe

Edward Lee's turmeric chicken and rice simmer in a flavor-packed curry sauce. It's an easy one-pot meal that's quick to prepare.

www.foodandwine.com

 

[SeattleBen]

Looks good from here. Fenugreek has mapley notes and bitter unless you toast them. There was some mystery maple syrup smell years ago that was traced to fenugreek. The exact circumstances escape me.

 

[rickbern]

I was making a Yemeni lamb broth that day...

Mysterious New York City Smell Is Fenugreek : NPR

 

[Bert2368]

I have discovered an Indian grocery store near my address in Eagan, MN. It has many useful things, and quite cheap too.

Like, 4 different kinds of bulk fenugreek seeds?! Dried whole ginger root. Bulk black peppercorns, cheaper and rather fresher/better quality than Walmart. Black mustard seed. Neem oil in little 30ml bottles, quite cheap. I emulsified the oil with a bit of dish detergent, well diluted with water this has FINALLY put paid to the damned Colorado potato beetles on my egg plants... And much cheaper than the prepared "green insecticide" neem oil preparations offered at garden centers.

Yay, Indian grocery store!

 

[coxhaus]

This looks good I am going to try it tomorrow if I can find everything. I pulled the chicken out of the freezer tonight. It should be thawed tomorrow.

I am looking for things to cook in my 5 qt sauté' pan. I think this will work. I have some chicken hind quarters I need to use up out of the freezer. I was going Mexican but I will try Indian.

I have been thinking about how to add heat to this dish. At first, I was thinking habanero pepper strips. Wife thinks habanero and turmeric might be strange flavors together. My latest thought is to use cayenne and dust the chicken so the heat is added to the chicken instead of the rice.

I don't have the stuff to make curry powder so I am using what I have. I have some Hot Madras Curry powder and some old bulk curry powder. I think I will blend them and use extra for the old curry.
My wife does not like crunchy rice so I will use 4 cups chicken broth and not 3.
This is my plan. We will see how it works out.
I plan to serve it with black beans and broccoli.
The broccoli will be steamed and served with salt and fresh squeezed lemon.

Black beans.
black beans
can of Rotel tomatoes
garlic and onion
turkey broth
salt and pepper
3 shakes of "Slap Ya Mama" spice.

It smells really good cooking. I should have used 3 or 3.5 cups of broth. It is a little soupy.

It tastes good. It has enough heat but not crazy hot. I sprinkled the raw chicken with cayenne pepper and salt before cooking.

Good luck with your second shot. The second one got to me a little.

 

[Bert2368]

I just half assed this with substituting a 5 lb. pork tenderloin for the chicken thighs, sliced, added 2 chopped Braeburn apples from my orchard & a big handful of raisins, plus a bit of ground cloves & allspice, a T of Worcestershire. Added 5 serrano chilies and a tsp. of cayenne too, leaving out the mint.

Seems quite good...

 

[Bert2368]

It's COLD. And NASTY.

Round 2, +

2X the hot stuff this time.

Holly the hound is quite intrigued by the odors-

 

[Bert2368]

Adding the pulp & juices of 3 preserved lemon quarters and all the "indian long pepper" I had left couldn't be WRONG, could it?

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Nope. Not wrong.