Assam Chicken Curry - appetising

I wanted to make Assam Fish Curry but wasn't able to get fresh fish so I decided to use chicken instead. Assam Chicken Curry is fragrant, more robust than fish curry but with the typical sweet sour assam taste.

I used whatever vegetables that were available at the time. I think Assam Chicken Curry will go well with pineapple, aubergine, green bean, okra and tomato.

Ingredients

• 5 pieces of chicken thigh with skin

• Marinade chicken with:

  • 1 tsp salt

  • 1 stalk lemongrass white part only (chopped)

  • 1/2 tsp ground coriander

  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin

  • 1/2 tsp turmeric

  • 1/2 tsp chilli powder

• 2 Tbsp oil

• Spice Mix: blend together

  • 1 onion (chopped)

  • 3 cloves garlic (chopped)

  • 2 slices of ginger

  • 1 tsp chilli powder

  • 1 tsp ground coriander powder

  • 1 tsp ground cumin powder

  • 1 tsp turmeric powder

  • 1 tsp black pepper powder

• 1 cardamon pod

• 2 cloves

• 3 Tbsp tamarind paste

• 2 Tbsp sugar

• 2 tsp fish sauce

• 5-6 curry leaves

• 3 cups of water

• Vegetables:

  • 1 aubergine (cut into thick batons)

  • 1 zucchini (cut into rounds)

  • 1/4 cabbage (cut into large slices)

  • Handful of cherry tomatoes (halved)

• Salt & sugar to taste

Method

1. Marinate chicken pieces for a couple of hours, preferably overnight.

2. In a large pot, heat up the oil and add the spice mix, cloves and cardamon pod. Fry on low heat until the oil starts to separate out.

3. Add the marinaded chicken and stir over medium heat until the chicken pieces are fully coated  with spices.

4. Add tamarind paste, sugar, fish sauce, curry leaves and 3 cups of water. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 mins.

5. Add all the vegetables and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 mins.

6. Add sugar and salt to taste. Serve with steamed rice.