Recipie for Malabar Chicken Curry

Ingredients
Chicken – 1 kg (cleaned and cut into medium size pieces)
Cashews – 5-7 (soaked in water)
Thick (First) coconut milk – 1/2 cup
Thin (Second) coconut milk – 1.5 cup
Salt – to tasteCoconut oil – 2 tbsp
To Fry and GrindCoconut oil – 2 tbsp
Onion – 3 medium (roughly chopped)
Ginger – 2″ piece (roughly chopped)
Garlic – 1 bulb (roughly chopped)
Tomato – 2 small (roughly chopped)
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Chili powder – 2 tsp
Coriander powder – 2 tsp
Garam masala – 1/2 tsp
Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
Pepper powder – 1/2 tsp

To Temper
Coconut oil – 1 tbspMustard seeds – ½ tsp
Pearl (Sambar) onions – 5 or 1/4 big onion (sliced)
Dry Red chilies – 3
Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Method
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Add the fennel seeds, chopped garlic and ginger. Fry for half a minute and then add the onions. Saute till it turns golden brown.Next add the tomato pieces, turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder and pepper powder. Cook for few minutes and switch off. Let the mixture cool a bit.After it cools down, take it in a mixie/blender and grind it to a smooth paste with little water. Now the masala is ready. Keep this aside.Heat the same pan once again or take a new pan and add some oil. Add the chicken pieces and saute for 3-4 minutes till the chicken pieces become opaque. This frying gives a very good texture to the cooked chicken.Add the above ground masala, required salt and the thin coconut milk. (Check out the detailed post of extracting coconut milk here.)Cover and cook for 10-12 minutes or till the chicken is completely cooked.In the meantime, grind the soaked cashews along with the thick coconut milk.Add this smooth paste to the gravy. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for another 5-7 minutes. By now the gravy will get thicker and creamier. Switch off and transfer the curry to a serving dish.To make the tempering, heat oil in a small pan. Pop the mustard seeds. Add the sliced onions and fry till it turns golden brown. Add the dry red chilies and curry leaves and switch off.Pour this aromatic oil on top of the curry. Keep covered with a lid until you are ready to serve to seal the aroma. Creamy delicious chicken curry is ready to serve.