In his attempt to create the perfect chicken curry dish Dhruv Baker gives us his perfectly spicy chicken curry recipe. 

Serves 4

Cooking time: 20 mins 

What You’ll Need:

• 75g desiccated coconut
• 2 x cinnamon stick
• 2 x star anise
• 3 whole dried red chillies
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 2 tsp fennel seeds
• 100ml of water
• 3 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 5 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 x red onions, finely chopped
• 4 x cloves garlic finenly chopped
• 2 x tsp grated fresh ginger
• 6 x tbsp fresh curry leaves
• 8 x tomatoes finely chopped
• 500g boneless chicken thighs (skin removed)
• 200ml water or chicken stock
• 1 x small bunch fresh coriander finenly chopped
• 1 x green chilli finely chopped (optional if you like it hot!)
• A squeeze of lemon
• Tilda Pure Basmati

What To Do: 

• Toast the coconut in a pan over a low heat, stirring until it turns golden brown

• Remove the coconut on to a plate and into the same pan add the cinnamon sticks, dried chillies, peppercorns, star anise and fennel seeds. Roast in the pan for 3-4 minutes then add the ground coriander and chilli powder and stir for a minute. Add 100ml of water to form a paste and cook for two minutes

• Remove the cinnamon sticks, star anise and whole chillies and keep for later. Add the toasted coconut, cinnamon powder, turmeric and salt to the pan. Add everything to a spice grinder or pestle and mortar and grind to a smooth paste

• Heat the oil in the same pan and slowly cook the onions until they are soft – this will take about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for a couple of minutes then turn up the heat and add the curry leaves and stir for a minute

• Add the tomatoes and the spice paste, return the cinnamon stick, star anise and chillie to the pan and cook for five minutes, stirring until you end up with a smooth paste and the oil starts to separate out

• Remove half the mixture and freeze or place in an airtight container, which will keep in the fridge for a week or so

• To cook the rice, add 2 measures of cold water to one measure of Tilda Pure Basmati. Bring to the boil, reduce to a low heat, cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes until the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat, stand covered for 5 mins. Lightly fork the grains before serving. For best results, soak the rice in cold water for 30 minutes, then rinse in a sieve with cold water

• Add the chicken and cook, covered, for 10 minutes. Add 200ml chicken stock remove the lid and cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through

• Remove the star anise, cinnamon and chilli, stir through the lemon juice and green chilli (if using) and scatter with the fresh coriander

Recipe from Tilda Rice, click here for the video clip.

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