Cape Malay-style braised chicken curry
A curry from South Africa that combines sweet and savoury flavours. Perfect for a cosy evening.
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 1 whole chicken on the bone, skin on, separated into 6–8 pieces
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 3 celery sticks, chopped
- 1 head garlic, cut in half
- 2 tbsp coriander seeds
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 cardamom pods, crushed
- 4 whole cloves
- 1–2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
For the vinegar mixture
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp soft light brown sugar
- 100²µ/3½´Ç³ú apricot jam
For the curry
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tsp chopped fresh root ginger
- 1 green pepper, seeds removed and diced
- 2 beef tomatoes, chopped
- 1 Maris Piper potato, peeled and diced
- 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tsp ground fennel seeds
- 1 green chilli, spilt
- 150g/5½oz baby spinach
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
- freshly steamed basmati rice
Method
To make the chicken, place all of the ingredients in a large casserole and just cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a very gentle simmer for 2 hours. Remove the chicken from the pan and retain 400ml/14fl oz of the cooking liquor. Discard the rest, keeping the chicken.
To make the vinegar mixture, mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl. Set aside.
To make the curry, heat the oil in a large saucepan, over a medium heat and fry the onion, garlic, ginger, green pepper and tomato for 10 minutes or until softened.
Add the potato and sweet potato, spices, green chilli and 200ml/7fl oz of the chicken cooking stock. Simmer for 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the vinegar mixture. Add the cooked chicken and another 200ml/7fl oz of the stock. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
Carefully stir in the spinach and serve the curry in bowls with the coriander and basmati rice.