Garlic Chicken (Indian Style)

Why hello there!

It's been a while hasn't it???

I mean, I know I've kind of been in and out over...oh...the past month or so??

But I've totally missed you! Yes YOU!

I hope you enjoyed all the fabulous guest bloggers who came over to play. I know I did.

But now...you are stuck with me again. Muahahahahahahaha! Sucka!

Haha! Just kidding. You know you love me. Right??

Anyway.

So...as you already know, thanks to my little confession, I love garlic.

I love it so much that most of the time I even see garlic in a recipe I mark it to be made immediately!

Then...if it's not in a recipe...I try to work it in. Though, I still haven't figured out how to work it into sweet dishes. But that may be better left alone.

Okay. Now I have another confession to make.

Don't laugh at me!

I made this dish...back in September!

I KNOW!!!!

I'm such a bad blogger!

I just kept getting carried away with so many other recipes that I never got around to sharing this one.

And it is a shame. Because this recipe is DE-LICIOUS!

No lie. Really.

This dish was so good that not only did I make it once for a friend and her hubby, but I also made it several days (yes, days) later for a dinner party.

And just looking at these pictures (though they aren't my best since I was playing with lighting at the time) makes me want to make and eat it all over again.

All right, all right. You are tired of waiting. I hear ya!

Let's get cooking!

Ingredients please! We've got: chicken (whatever you have to make a pound. I had drummies and boneless skinless thighs), plain non-fat yogurt, whole cloves, whole cardamom, lemon, jalapenos, garlic salt (or regular salt if you're into that kind of thing), fresh ginger, red onion, garlic cloves and turmeric (for color).

In a food processor you want to add the ginger, jalapenos (with or without the seeds depending on the heat you are shooting for) and 10-12 cloves of garlic.

Puree it all up until you have a nice paste.

Now stir in the yogurt and lemon juice until the ingredients are well combined. If you want to add a little salt or garlic salt at this point, now is your chance.

Place the chicken in a container and completely smother with the 'sauce' you just made. For the chicken I placed the drumsticks in whole and diced the boneless skinless thighs into bite sized pieces. Now cover and let marinade for a couple hours.

Once the chicken is done marinating, it's time to get cooking. Smash about 5-6 garlic cloves and throw them in a cold skillet (as you can see, I have more than 5-6 cloves. I was hosting a dinner party and doubled my recipe). Also toss in the whole cloves and cardamom.

Pour some olive oil over the ingredients in the cold skillet. Turn the heat on medium and allow the oil to infuse with the flavors of the garlic, cloves and cardamom while it heats.

When the oil is hot, add the sliced onion and sautee until golden.

Add the marinated chicken and turmeric...

And let the magic happen! LOL! Cook the chicken on Medium-Low heat, stirring occasionally until the chicken juice no longer runs pink. About 20-30 minutes. Since I doubled my batch, I had to let it cook a bit longer. I also covered mine though the original directions do not indicate this step.

When the chicken is done, serve yourself a healthy portion along with some jasmine rice and naan bread. Oh...and throw in a glass of wine for good measure.

Enjoy!!

Garlic Chicken (Indian Style)
Adapted from Indian Simmer

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Ingredients:

• 1 pound cut chicken (whatever kind you enjoy)
• 15-20 cloves of garlic
• 2-3 jalapenos (with or without seeds depending on desired heat)
• 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup plain non-fat yogurt
• 1/2 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 6-8 whole cloves
• 2 whole cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• Garlic (or regular) salt to taste

Directions:

1. In a food processor, puree together the jalapenos, 10-12 cloves of garlic and ginger to make a paste.
2. Blend in the yogurt and lemon juice until well combined; add a pinch of garlic salt.
3. Place chicken and 'sauce' in container, seal and marinate 2-3 hours.
4. When chicken is done marinating, place 5-6 cloves smashed garlic, whole cloves and whole cardamom in cold skillet. Add olive oil. Turn heat on medium to allow the oil to infuse with the flavors of the cloves, garlic and cardamom while heating.
5. When oil is hot, add sliced onion and sautee until golden.
6. Add chicken and turmeric to skillet.
7. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until chicken juice no longer runs pink, about 20-30 minutes. Add salt to taste about half way through cooking. Cover and cook longer if needed.
8. Serve with jasmine rice and naan bread.
9. Enjoy!!