Cardamom Chicken Recipes

CARDAMOM CHICKEN WITH SALT AND PEPPER CRUST

Steps:

• Place the garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey and cardamom in a resealable plastic bag. Place chicken thighs in the bag, and squeeze to coat. Press out most of the air, and seal the bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Remove the chicken from the marinade, and discard the marinade. Place chicken on a broiling pan or baking sheet. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Roast in the oven for 40 minutes, or until chicken is browned and crisp, and cooked through.

ORANGE-CARDAMOM ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the butter, cardamom, orange zest, ginger, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; set aside.
• Butterfly the chicken: Place on a cutting board, breast-side down with the neck toward you. Using a pair of sharp kitchen shears (and your biceps), cut through the bones on either side of the backbone; the spine should come away in a narrow strip, which you can discard or save for stock. Flip the bird over, breasts facing up and closest to you. Using the heel of your palm and your body weight, push down on the breastbone; you should hear it crack. The chicken should lie flat now. Rotate the drumsticks toward the center line of the body so she looks a little knock-kneed. There you go. You just butterflied a chicken!
• Slide your fingers between the flesh and the skin over the breasts, thighs and drumsticks. Use a teaspoon to deposit a little of the flavored butter into each pocket and smooth it out over each part of the chicken, making sure the butter is evenly spread, then pat the skin dry.
• Toss the potato slices with the sunflower oil, season with salt and pepper and let them sit in a bowl at room temperature alongside the chicken for 30 minutes. Give your oven a quick wipe down before preheating it to 500 degrees F. (The high temps will cause any leftover drips to smoke you out of your kitchen! If your oven still smokes, then turn it down to 450 degrees F after the first 10 minutes.)
• Drain off the water that's been drawn from the potatoes and pour the potatoes into an even layer in a large cast-iron skillet. Place the chicken on top of the potatoes and tuck the wings under her shoulders. Pop the whole kit 'n' kaboodle into the oven. Cook for 20 minutes. Rotate the skillet and cook for 20 more minutes, until the skin is crispy, the juices run clear and the thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.
• Remove the chicken from the oven and set aside to rest for 10 minutes on a cutting board, loosely tented with foil. Using a fish spatula or slotted spoon, gently turn the potatoes. If you'd like them crispier, pop them under your broiler for 3 to 5 minutes. Scoop out the potatoes onto a platter, leaving behind the pan grease. Cut the chicken into pieces, place them on top of the potatoes and serve with boldness and courage!
• Find more recipes from Aarti in her cookbook, Aarti Paarti ($28, Grand Central Publishing).

ROASTED CHICKEN BREASTS WITH ORANGE, CARDAMOM AND TURMERIC

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• In the bottom of a foil-lined broiler pan, toss the potato slices with a generous drizzle of olive oil and some salt and pepper, to taste.
• In a small bowl, stir together the butter, shallots, garlic, cardamom, orange zest, orange juice, turmeric, garam masala and salt and pepper, to taste. Separate the skin from chicken flesh using your index finger, moving it back and forth. Do not remove the skin completely, just make a pocket. Spoon half of the butter mixture under skin of 1 breast, smoothing it out with your index finger. Repeat with other chicken breast.
• Put a rack over the potatoes in the broiler pan and arrange the chicken on the rack. Roast until the chicken registers 160 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, and the potatoes are tender. Remove from the oven and transfer the chicken and potatoes to a serving platter. Allow to rest for 5 minutes then serve.

CARDAMOM BUTTER CHICKEN

Steps:

• Place the garlic, ginger, chillies and coriander stalks in the small bowl of a food processor with a good pinch of salt, and blend to a fine paste - or grind to a paste using a pestle and mortar.
• Heat 2 tbsp of the ghee or oil in a large pan, add the onions and cook slowly for 15-20 mins until golden and caramelised. Tip in the garlic-ginger paste, turn up the heat and cook for a further 5 mins. Add the ground spices and cook for 2 mins more until fragrant. Scoop the spicy onion mixture out of the pan into a bowl.
• Add the remaining ghee or oil to the pan and cook the chicken over a medium-high heat until browned all over. Tip into a bowl, cover and set aside.
• Return the onion mixture to the pan along with the whole spices, tomatoes and a can full of water (400ml). Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer gently for 40 mins.
• Return the chicken to the pan and cook, uncovered, for a further 10 mins until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the yogurt and cream, season well and scatter with coriander leaves. Serve with chapatis and rice.

CHICKEN WITH CARAMELIZED ONION AND CARDAMOM RICE

Steps:

• Put the sugar and scant 3 tablespoons water in a small saucepan and heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat, add the barberries, and set aside to soak. If using currants, you do not need to soak them in this way.
• Meanwhile, heat half the olive oil in a large sauté pan for which you have a lid over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion has turned a deep golden brown. Transfer the onion to a small bowl and wipe the pan clean.
• Place the chicken in a large mixing bowl and season with 1½ teaspoons each salt and black pepper. Add the remaining olive oil, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon and use your hands to mix everything together well. Heat the frying pan again and place the chicken and spices in it. Sear chicken for 5 minutes on each side and remove from the pan (this is important as it part-cooks the chicken). The spices can stay in the pan, but don't worry if they stick to the chicken. Remove most of the remaining oil as well, leaving just a thin film at the bottom. Add the rice, caramelized onion, 1 teaspoon salt and plenty of black pepper. Drain the barberries and add them as well. Stir well and return the seared chicken to the pan, pushing it into the rice.
• Pour the boiling water over the rice and chicken, cover the pan, and cook over very low heat for 30 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, remove the lid, quickly place a clean tea towel over the pan, and seal again with the lid. Leave the dish undisturbed for another 10 minutes. Finally, add the herbs and use a fork to stir them in and fluff up the rice. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve hot or warm with yogurt mixture if you like.

CARDAMOM FLAVOURED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat the oil, and lightly fry all but a pinch of the cardamom powder.
• Add the chicken and salt and stir until the meat is seared on all sides.
• Add the spices and tomato puree and mix well.
• Mix the yoghurt with 150ml water, mix and stir into the chicken, Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is tender.
• Serve hot over rice with the remaining pinch of cardamom powder sprinkled over.

ROAST CARDAMOM CHICKEN

Steps:

• Put the whole peppercorns, cardamom seeds and cumin in a spice mill and grind them into a fine powder. You can also do this with a mortar and pestle.
• Put the water in a blender along with the salt, ginger, garlic, cayenne, vinegar and ground spices.
• Blend to a smooth paste.
• Put the yogurt in a bowl large enough to hold the chicken.
• Stir in the spice paste.
• Add the chicken and make sure all pieces are covered in the marinade.
• Break the cinnamon stick in two and tuck it in with the chicken.
• Cover and marinate for at least two hours and as much as overnight.
• Set the oven to 220 C or 425°F.
• Bake the chicken in a shallow dish for 30 minutes or until cooked through.
• The yogurt should have formed a dark brown crust.
• Sprinkle with mint leaves.

CARDAMOM CHICKEN WITH LIME LEAVES

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large, wide pan, add the onion and fry for 5 mins until softened, stirring every now and then. Stir in the garlic, ginger, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon, and cook for 5 mins more, stirring frequently. Add all the remaining spices with the chilli, stir briefly over the heat then add the tomatoes with 1 can of water, the chutney and bouillon.
• Stir in the aubergine, bring to the boil then cover the pan and simmer for 15 mins. Stir well, and add the chicken and lime leaves. Push them under the liquid and scatter over the green pepper. Cover the pan and leave to cook for 40 mins. Remove the chicken, shred in to medium-sized pieces and return to the sauce.
• Meanwhile, make the rice. Put all the ingredients in a medium pan with 750ml water. Bring to the boil , then cover and cook for 20 mins. Turn off the heat and leave for 5 mins to absorb any excess moisture. Serve with the curry.