India - The country of yogurt and onions...

India - The country of yogurt and onions... (c) Jonathan Teng

a few year ago when I was on a trip to India, I noticed that manydishes were cooked in yogurt sauce and that saut=E9ing of onions was oneof the favorite ingredient in most recipes. When I say "onions", I mean "LOTS of onions"... It seems that most of these Indian guys are fond of that, huh?

Anyway... let's get back to what I said earlier... :-)

Once onions were saut=E9ed, yogurt and species were gradually added and then the meat - chicken or lamb is cooked in this sweet-scented mixture.

The meat will be as caramel-colored, not really browned, and the taste? Complex as those braised European dishes.

While the mixture is being cooked, you can start preparing everything else since it will take about 40 minutes to 1 hour for the chicken and lamb respectively.

Most of the spices use here will sweeten the taste of the mixture: cinnamon, cloves and ginger. In a dry skillet, you can mix together whole spices like cinnamon, cloves, seeds, coriander and cardamom until it you can smell their perfume and then just crush them.

Another option is to combine whole and ground spices, add also whole cardamoms pods, cloves and cinnamon. It all depends on you.

I also noticed that cooking with yogurt tends to break over heat. But this is not really a big problem. Here is what I recommend you to do...

Beat cornstarch with the yogurt before adding it to the pot and keep the heat low while the cooking last. This will not only keep the yogurt intact but will also thicken the sauce and make it more glorious.

Without doubt you'll want to eat it with plenty of rice. So don't forget to prepare that too. :-)

Lamb or Chicken in Onion-Yogurt Sauce =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

Salt

1 1/2 pounds lamb shoulder or leg, cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch chunks, or 4 whole chicken legs 1 cinnamon stick 1 tablespoon minced ginger, or 1 teaspoon dried ginger 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste 10 cardamom pods 10 cloves garlic, peeled 2 cups yogurt 2 large onions or 4 medium onions, sliced 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 teaspoons ground coriander 3 cloves Chopped fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

In a large skillet or casserole, put butter and turn heat to medium- high. Add garlic, onions and a large pinch of salt.

Stir occasionally while cooking, until you see the onions become very soft and brown. This will take at least 15 minutes. Add and stir in spices and cook another minute or so. Add chicken or lamb and stir.

Whisk cornstarch with yogurt, in a bowl, until smooth. Stir it into the mixture. If you are using chicken add about 1/3 cup of water in it. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, then cover and turn heat to low.

Cook at least 40 minutes (by which time chicken will likely be tender) or longer, stirring occasionally, or until lamb is quite tender. Taste and adjust seasoning, then garnish with cilantro, and serve with basmati rice.

Yield: 4 servings.

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