Chicken Curry with Tarragon Rice

Preparation time 30 minutes

Makes four servings
80p per serving

This is what it cost me, based on purchasing ingredients at the lowest price I could find.  This includes supermarket offers on produce and branded items as well as supermarket value-priced brands.

Ingredients

Curry

• 400 grams roasted, deboned chicken thighs or legs 
• 1 500g carton tomato passata or 1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 2 medium onions
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 heaped teaspoon chicken stock granules
• 2 heaped teaspoons sugar or granulated sucrolose
• 2 heaped teaspoons crushed garlic
• 2 heaped teaspoons crushed ginger
• 2 heaped tablespoons curry powder
• 1 heaped tablespoon garam masala
• About 4 ounces water
• Hot chilli powder to taste

Rice

• 200 grams (a mugful) uncooked long grain rice
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 heaped teaspoon turmeric

Puree one onion in a food processor and chop the other.  (Or chop both for a chunkier curry.)

On a back burner, boil a large saucepan of water for the rice. 

On a front burner, put 2 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add the garlic, ginger, curry powder and garam masala.  Stir for 2-3 minutes to combine the spices into a paste.  Stir in the water and add the stock granules and sugar. 

Add the rice to the boiling water.  Reduce the heat and simmer for around ten minutes until you can break a grain with your fingernail. 

Add the pureed and chopped onions to your spices and simmer for about ten minutes until soft and translucent. 

Put the cooked rice into a sieve in the sink to drain.

Stir the tomato passata and chicken chunks into the curry.  Now taste!  If you want a hotter curry, add chilli powder by the teaspoon until you reach your preferred level of mouth-burn.  If you want a more fragrant curry with a richer blend of spices, add more garam masala.  Simmer on low heat until the tumeric rice is ready.

Pour oil into the empty rice pan, toss in the cooked rice and stir to coat.  Sprinkle on the turmeric and mix until the rice is evenly coloured.

Suggestions

• For a creamier curry, stir in two heaped teaspoons of yoghurt before serving.
• For more colour, flavour and texture, add sliced mixed peppers, cauliflower or any other veg you like in curry sauce.