WHAT’S COOKING: Chicken and saag curry — two in one

I like a saag curry, especially one that includes meat. Essentially this means you’re making two curries and combining them to become one. In this case I cooked spinach and chicken separately, and folded the second into the first.

Saag, in Indian and Punjabi cuisine, refers to “greens”, whether spinach, chard, mustard greens or collard greens, used in tandem with a protein to form a curry meal. Collard greens are not widely used in South Africa – they’re part of the brassica family along with kale and broccoli – but look much like spinach and chard.

Tony’s easy chicken saag curry

(Serves 4)

Ingredients

For the chicken curry:

8 deboned, skinless chicken thighs

3 Tbsp coconut oil

1 cinnamon stick

1 tsp each ground cardamom, coriander and cumin

½ tsp each of ground turmeric and chilli powder

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

1 or 2 red chillies, sliced (optional)

1 x 400g can coconut cream

Salt to taste

White pepper to taste

Basmati rice, as much as needed

For the saag curry:

½ cup butter or ghee

2 Tbsp ground turmeric 

2 tsp cumin seeds

1 green chilli, seeded and chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

6 cups chopped fresh spinach

1 tsp ground cumin 

1 tsp ground coriander 

1 tsp coarse sea salt

To garnish:

Fresh coriander leaves, chopped (optional as the spinach is also green)

Method

For the chicken curry:

In a little bowl, stir the dry spices together using a teaspoon.

In a heavy pot, melt the coconut oil on a low heat and add the cinnamon stick and ground spices. Add the chopped onion and garlic, stir and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes.

Add the chicken thighs, and stir them around in the mixture to coat them.

Add the coconut cream and stir, and the sliced chillies if using.

Season with salt and taste.

Simmer with the lid on for 10 minutes or so on a lowish heat for the chicken to cook through.

Taste again, and adjust salt if it needs more.

Meanwhile, cook the rice in your usual way.

For the spinach curry:

Wash the spinach in a sink of cold water, and drain.

Shred the spinach (which you’ve already washed and drained).

Melt the butter in a heavy pot, stir in the turmeric, cumin seeds, chilli and garlic and cook gently for two minutes for the aromatics to flavour the butter.

Stir in the ground cumin, coriander and salt, add the shredded spinach, stir so that the spinach is coated with the buttery spices, then cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

This is ready to be stirred into the chicken curry. Simply add the saag curry to the pot containing the chicken curry and fold it through. Serve with basmati rice. Garnish with chopped coriander. DM