Chicken Karahi is a ginger, garlic and tomato-based curry, and also contains fresh green chilies, julienne-cut raw ginger and coriander and a handful of spices and NO ONION! 

In my version, a little bit of Kasuri Methi is added to get that Punjabi street-style dish found in dhabas all over North India and Pakistan.  I make it sound more complex than it is, but this dish comes together in under 20 minutes if not less, with multisensory layers of spices like black pepper, hand pound roasted cumin and coriander seeds, sweet and tangy tomato, heat from the hot peppers and raw ginger and the cooling fresh cilantro.

A Karahi or Kadai is a thick semicircular pan, very similar in shape to a Wok, but with steeper sides to distribute the heat evenly. Think of the Karahi recipe, like a stir-fry, it’s an active, stirring, adding, adding and stirring some more kind of a dish, and like any stir-fry, you don’t cover this with a lid and steam anything.

Finely chopped plum or tomato on the vine are your best friend, because they break down quickly, releasing lots of moisture, cooking along with the chicken, into a beautiful thick gravy coating the chicken.

Hand torn cilantro and a haystack of julienned raw ginger finish the dish, which should be served with plenty of warm buttery naan or roti for gripping bites of the flavor-packed chicken and mopping up any gravy. 

And if you want to totally complete the meal then serve some salty lassi to cool down.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup oil – light canola or olive oil
• 2 1/4 lbs. chicken (1kg/550gms) breast with bone in or breast cut into curry pieces
• 2 tablespoons grated ginger  
• 8-10 cloves garlic minced/2 tbsp. garlic paste
• 1/2 cup yogurt – room temperature
• 3 cups tomatoes, finely chopped (use 1 cup more if you like a bit more gravy)
• 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili
• 1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
• 1 teaspoon chili flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder (heaped)
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder (heaped)
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon Kasturi methi/ dried Fenugreek leaves
• 2 hot Thai green chilies or Serrano, slit in half lengthwise
• 1/2 bunch cilantro finely chopped
• 2-INCH ginger cut into matchstick pieces

Instructions:

1. Heat up your oil in a karahi or wok, or even a cast iron skillet.
   
    
2. Add garlic and ginger pastes, stirring constantly to prevent burning, add chicken, and stir constantly, stirring frequently, until the chicken becomes golden brown.
   
    
3. Add room temperature yoghurt, and continue to fry the chicken for another 5 minutes.
   
   
4. Add the chopped tomatoes and spices from the red chilli powder to the salt. 
   
   
5. Stir in and allow this all to cook on high, stirring to ensure nothing sticks at the bottom of the pan (you can add a tablespoon of water if IT’S sticking but not more)Continue to cook this mix for about 10 minutes; the oil will separate from the gravy and the chicken should be cooked through at this point.
   
   
6. Add the kasturi methi by rubbing it between your palms.
   
   
7. Add the cilantro and green chillies, garam masala, stir, turn the heat to  low and simmer for 5 minutes.
   
   
8. Garnish with matchstick-cut ginger, finely chopped cilantro, Thai green chilli, and lemon wedges.

Serve with hot and bubbly buttered naan and because there are no onions in the curry, a side of sliced onions with salt and a squeeze of lemon juice or vinegary pickled onions (sirke wale pyaaz) pair well.