Lemony chicken and spinach curry
- serves 4
This is a healthy curry with no creamy sauce which freezes really well. A pile of basmati rice and a good dollop of yoghurt will make it into a meal.
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp sunflower, light olive or coconut oil, plus a little extra if necessary
600g diced chicken (leg, thigh or breast)
1 large or 2 small onions, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped, crushed or grated
5cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped or grated
1–2 fresh chillies, finely chopped (add the seeds if you like it hot)
1 tsp turmeric
10 cardamom pods
juice of 2–3 lemons, depending on size
400ml vegetable or chicken stock
300g spinach, tough stalks removed and leaves roughly chopped if large
large handful of coriander, roughly chopped
salt and black pepper
Lightly toast the cumin and coriander seeds in a dry frying pan until you just start to smell their aroma, then grind them with a pestle and mortar. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan.
Add the chicken pieces and fry over a high heat, turning once, until golden brown. (Don’t overcrowd the pan – cook in batches if you need to.) Transfer the chicken to a plate. Add the onion to the pan with a splash more oil if needed.
Fry gently for 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until soft. Add the garlic, ginger, chillies and all the ground spices and fry, stirring, for another 2 minutes.
Return the chicken to the pan with the lemon juice and stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or so, until the chicken is cooked through.
Stir in the spinach and let it wilt for just a minute or two before seasoning and stirring in the chopped coriander.