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Phaal Chicken Curry

Phaal Chicken Curry is a traditional Indian recipe for the hottest style of Indian curry, the phall, prepared as it would be in an Indian restaurant. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Indian version of: Phaal Chicken Curry.

prep time

10 minutes

cook time

60 minutes

Total Time:

70 minutes

Serves:

6-8

Rating:

Tags : CurryChilli RecipesChicken RecipesIndian Recipes

The phaal (also spelled phall) is India's hottest style of curry by far. It originates in Punjab, based on a Bengali original (see the recipe for Bengali Hot Dry Meat Curry), though but the Bengali version is a dry curry and this gravy-based curry is really a curry restaurant invention. Though not typically on the menus of British or American curry restaurants, the Phaal can be specially ordered in some. The most famous of these is the Brick Lane Curry House in New York which creates a Phaal with ten different kinds of chillies and where the chefs wear a face mask whilst preparing it.

I have seen a number of recipes published on the web, but to be truthful a lot of these appear a bit wimpy to me (6 tbsp hot chilli powder!). Any West African would laugh at that.

But I finally found a recipe that contains enough fresh chillies and dried chillies to make this dish a worthwhile challenge

Ingredients:

For the Dry Masala:
6 black peppercorns
1 tsp black mustard seeds
seeds from 4 cardamom pods
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1/2 tsp nigella seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp cumin seeds
3cm length of cinnamon stick
4 cloves

For the Curry:
1 whole chicken (about 1.5kg), skinned and jointed into serving pieces
8 garlic cloves, peeled
6 habanero chillies
6 birds' eye chillies
2 red Scotch bonnet chillies
1 Naga chilli (optional and only for the truly brave)
3cm length of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3 tbsp ghee (or vegetable oil)
1 tbsp tomato purée
400g (14 oz) tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp garam masala
4 dried Kashmiri chillies, lightly toasted and ground to a powder (or hot chilli powder)
1 tbsp mango chutney
bunch of fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves

Method:

Begin with the dry masala. Separately dry fry the spices for between 1 and 2 minutes each, or until lightly coloured and aromatic. Turn into a bowl and set aside. When you have toasted the final spice, turn the spices into a spice or coffee grinder (you may have to do this in batches) and render to a fine powder.

In a mortar (or food processor) grind together the garlic, ginger and whole chillies to a paste (add a little oil if needed). Heat the oil in a large wok or pan, add the onions and fry for about 6 minutes, or until they just begin to colour. Scatter over the spice masala powder and stir to combine then stir in the ginger, garlic and chilli paste along with the tomato purée.

Continue frying for about 2 minutes or until the tomato purée darkens then stir in the turmeric, paprika and the ground Kashmiri chillies.

Score the flesh of the chicken with a sharp knife ensuring that you pierce the thickest parts of the meat so that the sauce can penetrate. Arrange in a shallow dish, pour over the sauce and turn the chicken around in the sauce then set aside for 5 minutes to marinate.

Turn back into the wok, bring to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes. At this point, add the chopped tomatoes and mango chutney. Continue cooking for about 40 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. During this time, add water to thin the sauce as needed.

Serve hot, garnished with the coriander leaves and accompanied with rice and plenty of yoghurt-based dip to cool your mouth.