CHICKEN BHAJI
• 600g (1lb 5oz) chicken thighs, cut into smallish pieces
• 2–3 teaspoons chilli paste (store-bought is all good)
• 2 tablespoons minced or grated ginger
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
• ¼ cup (60ml/2fl oz) lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• ½ tablespoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons mustard seeds
• 1 cup (260g/9¼oz) thick natural yoghurt
• 1 cup (120g/4¼oz) chickpea flour
• ½ cup (60g/2¼oz) cornflour
• 2 teaspoons flaky sea salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
FRESH CORIANDER LABNEH
• ⅔ cup (15g/½oz) coriander leaves
• 1½ cups (390g/13¾oz) strained natural yoghurt
TO COOK AND SERVE
• 2 litres (70 fl oz) canola oil or similar cooking oil
• 1½ cups (180g/6½oz) cornflour
• Lemon or lime wedges
• Coriander leaves
• Fried red chillies (optional)
• Fried curry leaves
Method
Place the chicken pieces in a suitable-sized mixing bowl, then add the chilli paste, ginger, garlic and lemon juice. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon. Now add the spices and yoghurt and mix through. Add the chickpea flour and cornflour, season with salt and pepper, and mix everything together. The chicken will be covered in quite a thick paste. Refrigerate until required.
To make the labneh, take a stick blender or similar. Place the coriander in the bottom of a jar that the blender can fit into. Add a couple of tablespoons of the yoghurt on top of the coriander leaves, then blitz into a paste. Take the paste and fold it through the rest of the yoghurt. Refrigerate until required.
I like to cook the chicken in batches, and to make sure the chicken pieces are cooked through we are going to cook them twice. You can do the first cook ahead, then the second cook prior to serving. All the messy part has been done, so serving is a dream from that point.
Heat the oil in your deep-fryer or a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring up to 160°C (315°F). Line a plate with kitchen paper.
Working with batches of six to eight pieces at a time, dip your chicken pieces into the cornflour, then carefully add them to your hot oil. Cook for around 3 minutes, then remove and place on the prepared plate. Continue until you have finished the first cook of all the chicken pieces. You can refrigerate these until you are ready to serve.
Now bring the oil up to 180°C (350°F). You can gauge this by adding a piece of bread to the oil; if it’s at around 180°C (350°F), it will take about a minute for the bread to turn golden and crisp. In a couple of batches, cook the chicken pieces for another 2 minutes, until golden and super crisp.
To serve, use either individual plates or a platter. Spoon down some of the coriander labneh, top with the crisp chicken bhaji, then garnish with a wedge of lemon or lime, coriander leaves, fried chilli and curry leaves. Tuck in—these are delicious.
Fried curry leaves
Fried curry leaves are a doddle to make and I think they are a terrific, unique garnish for any curry situation. Curry leaves can be purchased from most Asian supermarkets year-round. They come in relatively large bunches, so just use what you need. The good news is they freeze really well, so you can have some always at hand.
• Curry leaves
• Canola oil or similar cooking oil, for shallow-frying
Pick the curry leaves from the stalks. Pour enough oil into a suitable-sized saucepan to shallow-fry. Place over medium-high heat. Once it gets to 170–180°C (325–350°F), or when a cube of bread dropped into the hot oil turns brown in 15–20 seconds, add the curry leaves. As soon as the leaves start turning a dark translucent colour (10–15 seconds), remove immediately with a slotted spoon or sieve and empty onto kitchen paper. Cool completely then store in an airtight container until required.
Fried red chillies
I love these as a garnish, still bright red in parts, but golden brown around the edges. If they are hot chillies, they will still bring plenty of heat to the party!
• Red chillies
• Canola oil or similar cooking oil, for deep-frying
With a sharp knife, slice the chillies into rounds as thin as possible. Heat up a moderate amount of oil in a suitable-sized saucepan. Add the chillies, stir and cook until golden and brown around the edges.
Remove with a slotted spoon or sieve, then drain on kitchen paper. Use the same day.
Recipes extracted from Eat Up New Zealand: The Bach Edition by Al Brown, photography by Josh Griggs, published by Allen & Unwin NZ, RRP $49.99.
