In this dish, the mildly spiced sauce is thickened using lentils rather than the traditional onions fried in ghee.
ingredients
serves 4 - 6
1/2 cup red lentils
2 tbsp mild curry powder
2 tsp ground cilantro
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 cups vegetable stock
8 chicken thighs, skinned
8 ounce fresh shredded spinach, or frozen, thawed and well drained
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
salt and black pepper
sprigs of fresh cilantro, to garnish
white or brown basmati rice and grilled poppadoms, to serve
method
1. Rinse the lentils under cold running water. Put in a large, heavy-based saucepan with the curry powder, ground cilantro, cumin seeds and stock.
2. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently for 10 minutes.
3. Add the chicken and spinach. Replace the cover and simmer gently for a further 40 minutes, or until the chicken has cooked.
4. Stir in the chopped cilantro and season to taste. Serve garnished with fresh cilantro and accompanied by the rice and grilled poppadoms.
