Royal Chicken with Indian Spiced Spinach and Turmeric Brown Rice

Today I decided to try the new Indian food cookbook I got, and BOY am I glad I did. This was the best dinner I’ve made in a long time, I was pleasantly surprised (as was my husband!) with the flavor of these dishes. It’s one of those things that you eat and go “Did I make this??!! Awesome!!!”. I can’t take any of the credit though, it was all in the recipe.

The recipe for the chicken is inspired by Madhur Jaffrey’s Quick & Easy Indian Cooking. I made several adjustments based on what ingredients I can find in my area and the portion that was right for the two of us.

Royal Chicken Cooked in Yogurt (Shahi Murgh)

• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 2 t. salt
• 1 t. ground cumin
• 1 t. ground roasted corriander
• 1/2 t. cayenne pepper
• 1 t. garam masala
• 1 t. paprika
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 chicken pieces (dark meat)
• 1/4 c. vegetable oil
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 bay leaves

No wonder this food is so yummy, it has so many spices!!! Beautiful.

-Heat oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the whole spices (bay leaves, cinnamon stick, cloves) and then add lightly salted chicken pieces. Brown the chicken in the pan with the whole spices.

-While the chicken is browning, mix the other spices (salt, cumin, corriander, cayenne pepper, garam masala, paprika, cilantro) in a bowl with the yogurt.

-Add yogurt to browned chicken pieces and stir to combine.

-Cover and let simmer on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the chicken was cooking, I started on the rice.

Turmeric Brown Rice (also inspired by Quick & Easy Indian Cooking)

• 2 cups brown basmati rice
• 3 T. vegetable oil
• 3 whole cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 t. salt
• 1/2 t. ground turmeric
• 2 3/4 c. water

-Heat oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add the whole spices (cloves, bay leaf, cinnamon stick). Add the garlic and let it brown, about 1 minute. Add rice, salt, and turmeric to the pan and stir until the rice is coated in the oil and spices. Add the water, cover, and lower the heat to low. Let the rice cook for 30 minutes, or until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.

Indian Spinach

This is a recipe I sort of made up, it’s like a faux palak paneer (spinach with fresh cheese) because I used tofu instead of paneer. It’s easy and delicious!

• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 T. coconut oil
• 1 6 oz. package of fresh spinach
• 1 t. ground roasted corriander
• 1/4 t. turmeric
• 1 t. salt
• 1/4 cup extra firm tofu
• 1/2 c. plain yogurt

-Heat the coconut oil in a skillet. Add the onion and cook until golden brown. In the meantime, chop the spinach into large chunks. Add garlic to the pan and cook until golden brown. Add spinach and seasonings and toss to sautee.

-Add tofu and stir gently. Add yogurt and wait for spinach to boil. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

-To finish off the chicken (sorry I know this recipe is jumping around a little), raise heat and stir sauce quickly until it thickens.

Plate everything together and serve!

Thanks so much for reading!