Recipe/ChickenSabzi

Adapted from nagi's famous family curry.

1.5kg onion, chopped
1 large thumb length fresh ginger, finely chopped or grated
1 bulb garlic
Green chillies to taste (more than 2-3 and SunKitten / AR can't eat the result); alternatively, dried chilli seeds, ~1/2 teaspoon or so; or skip entirely if no-one likes heat

4 tins tomatoes (peeled plum are nicer than chopped but more fuss - swish a sharp knife around inside the tin to chop them)

1-2 tablespoons salt
50g garam masala (get it unbranded from an asian store, not a supermarket brand - the latter don't taste of very much and come in tiny amounts for the same price as half-kilo bags from asian stores. Check the ingredients: different mixes have different things - avoid ones containing chilli; if cumin is listed as first ingredient, skip the extra cumin and add the garam masala instead).
50g ground cumin
10g turmeric

2kg chicken on the bone. Don't make it all breast. Half breasts half thighs works well, as does all thighs (and thighs are cheap), as does getting 2-3 entire small chickens, skinning them and chopping them into eighths. If the cut comes with skin, peel the skin off before chucking both skin and meat in the pot - leaving it attached stops the meat absorbing the spices.

If cooking for vegetarians, use ~2kg of vegetables instead of the chicken; butternut squash, sweet potato and cauliflower all work well. Chickpeas and lentils can also add interest; everything else is quite flexible, but if using lentils, check soaking/cooking times and add when appropriate during the simmer stage to avoid overcooking.

Fresh coriander leaves - either a large bunch from an asian store, or 3-4 of the tiny packets you get in supermarkets. The former is much cheaper but comes complete with roots which need trimming off and clods of earth which need to be washed off, so is much more fuss.

These proportions make ~12-14 generous portions and fit comfortably in a 4.5l pot; scale as appropriate.

Peel and finely chop the onions, ginger and garlic; also finely chop chillies if using.

Heat some oil in the pot. No, more oil than that. Add the cumin, fry for 30-40 seconds stirring vigorously; if it sticks, you need more oil. Add the other spices and salt, stir; add the ginger, stir for 30-45 seconds until starting to change colour. Add the chillies and garlic, fry for a minute or two. Add the onions, turn the heat down, stir (vigorously, scraping the bottom) a few times a minute until onions go translucent. If at any point things start sticking to the bottom, deglaze the pan: add a bit of boiling water, stir vigorously scraping the bottom until clean, turn heat back up to maximum until water boiled away and frying resumes.

Stir in the tomatoes and turn the heat up. Once they start bubbling, turn the heat down to lowest, cover with a lid while leaving a small gap and allow to simmer for 10-20 minutes.

Separate any skin from the chicken, and put it all in the pan. You don't need to chop it (well, unless you got entire chickens rather than breasts/thighs). Give it a good stir and turn the heat up; stir occasionally until everything returns to a simmer, then turn the heat all the way down. Stir occasionally so that it doesn't stick to the bottom; simmer for at least 3 hours to properly soften the meat (NB. if cooking for vegetarians and so using veg instead of chicken, add veg instead of chicken as above but simmer for no more than one hour).

While you are waiting, prepare the fresh coriander. If you got it from a supermarket, wash well and chop. If you got it from an asian store, remove the large clods of earth, individually take the leaves off the stalks (this takes *ages* - get someone to help, if you can), discard the stalks, wash the leaves well - discarding any yellow or brown ones - and chop. Also start the rice going about 20 minutes before you plan to serve.

Stir in the coriander just before serving. Keeps in the fridge for at most three days, but freezes very well.

Rachael made a veggie version of this, inspired by the vegetable shabji at the BengalDiner. Notes primarily for my own future reference, but might be useful to others: I halved the quantities above, and replaced the chicken with a large carrot, 2 potatoes, about 150g green beans, a small cauliflower, a can of chick peas and some sweetcorn. I used one green chilli, deseeded, and the result was tasty but mild enough for BethanyChurchill. I also added a couple of teaspoons of mustard because the BengalDiner menu says theirs has mustard in.