Name: Kashmiri Murgh Yakhni
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 250 g Chicken, curry cut, bone-in; 1 cup Indian-Style Yogurt, whisked until completely smooth and creamy; 1½ tbsp Ghee; 2 Green Cardamom, lightly crushed; 1 Black Cardamom; 2 Cloves; ½ Cinnamon Sticks, 2-inch stick; ¾ tbsp Fennel Powder, saunf powder, the soul of Kashmiri cooking; ½ tsp Ground Dried Ginger, saunth powder; ¾ tsp Salt; ½ cup Water

55 mintotal

Prep 15 min · Cook 40 min

Serves: 2
Difficulty: Medium
Spice: Mild

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Method

Heat ghee in a heavy-bottomed pot or handi. Add the whole spices (green cardamom, black cardamom, cloves, cinnamon). Fry for 30 seconds until highly fragrant.
30 sec
Add the chicken pieces. Roast them in the spiced ghee on medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes until the chicken turns opaque and develops light brown spots.
8–10 min
Lower the heat. Add the fennel powder (saunf), dry ginger powder (saunth), and salt. Toss well to coat the chicken. Avoid burning the dry spices.
Add the measured water, cover, and cook for 15 minutes until the chicken is 80% cooked and tender.
15 min
Turn the flame down to the lowest setting. Take a ladle of the hot chicken broth from the pot and whisk it into your bowl of curd (tempering the yogurt).
Pour the tempered curd slowly into the pot while stirring continuously and vigorously in one direction.
Keep stirring until the gravy comes to a gentle boil. Once boiling, you can stop stirring.
Simmer uncovered for another 10 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked, the sauce thickens, and a layer of aromatic ghee floats to the top.
10 min

How to tell it's done

Extremely tender chicken swimming in a rich, pale, creamy yogurt broth heavily perfumed with fennel and whole spices.

Getting it right

Tip

Tempering the yogurt (mixing a little hot broth into it before adding it to the main pot) is the chef's secret to ensuring a silky smooth white gravy that never splits.

What to serve it with

Exquisite when served over a bed of warm Steamed Rice or Kashmiri Pulao.

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Ingredients