Boneless Chicken Handi Recipe – Pakistani Style

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I am not sure how many versions of a boneless chicken handi recipe are out there in the world right now, but I can tell you how many I have tried already. I’ve tried the ones with almond paste, the ones with cashew nut paste, I’ve tried ones that had flour in it! And ones with no cream. Needless to say, this is the one I stuck with. For those of you who are new to Pakistani/Indian food, Chicken Handi is a common onion and tomato gravy based dish that has all the spices to make your taste buds light up! (there’s a modification in the end to reduce the heat for those who can’t handle it ok?)

This is one of those perfect recipes that is rich enough to be served in Dinner parties and light enough to be added in the weekly meal rotations. Just like Dam ka Keema (slow cooked ground beef) and the Chicken Malai pulao, this one is also quick and effortless.

STEPS TO MAKING THE BEST HANDI

We are going to use chopped onions in this version of the chicken handi. Start by adding oil and ghee in a pot. If it were up to me I would totally use ghee completely (as it is healthy). So, add chopped onions and green chilies.

Disclaimer: The green chilies I used were the big ones that we often use in Chicken Karhai. So they weren’t very strong. If you opt for using smaller more stronger green chilies, reduce the number of green chilies by half.

When your onions turns a good golden brown color (in about 5 mins), add tomatoes. The tomatoes I use are cut into 4 pieces and de-seeded. I want to take a minute to emphasize the importance of this step right here ok?

Tomatoes are amazingly versatile. They can offer different taste and textures just by being added differently into recipes. This recipe calls for half fried tomatoes softened up and then blended. If you blend the tomatoes raw, the taste and texture of the end result will change significantly, just a heads up 🙂

Getting back to the steps, let your tomatoes fry in the oil and soften up. It takes about 5 to 8 mins. When your tomatoes have softened, turn off the flame.

Push the tomatoes to one end and move them directly into the blender. We don’t want to add more oil for the chicken. This way you can use the same oil in the pan to saute boneless chicken.

Blend the tomatoes with yogurt and set aside.

In the same oil, add boneless chicken and all the spices mentioned in the recipe. And saute the chicken for about  2 to 3 mins until the chicken changes color. 

Add the tomato paste back into the chicken and cover with the lid. Let the gravy cook for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Pro-tip: I like to add 1 tbsp of tomato paste as well for a bit of a color boost since the tomatoes here don’t really have a good color going on. 

You will see the oil seperate from the sides after a while (roughly 10 to 15 mins). And your gravy will have a thick look similar to butter chicken. Add the cream at this point and dried fenugreek leaves as well. Cook for another 2 minutes to let the cream cook through and turn that flame off!

This would be a good time to check seasonings, salt etc. The cream kind of subdues the flavors a little. Which is actually the point of adding it as well. 

RECIPE ALTERATIONS

If you are not some one who can tolerate spicy food, skip the green chilies and red chili powder in the recipe. 

If your Chicken Handi turns out to be more spicy than you wanted, just add a little more cream and a bit more salt to balance out the flavors.

You can use the same recipe for regular chicken as well.

If your not a fan of adding cream to your gravy dishes, skip the green chilies and black pepper from the recipe and make the recipe without cream. 

RECIPE FOR BONELESS CHICKEN HANDI

Spicy Chicken Handi

Yield: Serves 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Boneless chicken cooked with South Asian spices, in a spicy gravy made with onions, tomato and yogurt, topped with cream.

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Ingredients

• 1/2 kg (500 gm) boneless chicken cut into cubes
• 1 big onion or 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 4 - 5 green chilies finely sliced
• 1 tbsp Garlic ginger paste
• 1/4 cup oil + 1 tbsp ghee
• 4 large tomatoes cut open in halves and de-seeded
• 1 tbsp tomato paste (optional)
• 1 + 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
• 1/4 tsp turmeric (haldi) - not more than this
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp white pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp all spice powder (garam masala)
• 1 tsp cumin powder (zeera powder)
• 1 cup (250 gm) yogurt
• 1 heaped tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
• 2 tbsp of fresh unsweetened cream + a bit more for garnish

Instructions

1. Put a pot on the stove at medium flame and add oil and ghee. Add onions and green chilies. Saute till the onions turn golden brown.
2. Add tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes or until the tomatoes soften up enough to start losing its shape
3. Turn off the flame. Remove the tomatoes and blend them in a blender along with yogurt.
4. Add chicken to the pot with left over oil in it. Add garlic ginger paste, salt, and all the spices except dried fenugreek leaves. Saute at medium to high flame for 2 to 3 mins.
5. Add the tomato yogurt mixture back into the pot and cover the lid. Let the chicken cook for about 8 to 10 mins.
6. When the oil starts to seperate at the edges of the gravy, add Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), and cream along with tomato paste (optional)
7. Cook for another 3 minutes to let the cream cook.
8. Adjust spices and seasoning at this point.
9. Serve the chicken handi in a dish and garnish with 1 tbsp of cream and dried fenugreek leaves.

Notes

If your handi becomes to spicy, add 1/4 cup milk to balance out the spices and top it with a little more sprinkled salt.

The addition of cream subdues the spices and salt a little. Always check the flavours after adding cream.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 556 Total Fat: 32g Saturated Fat: 8g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 22g Cholesterol: 131mg Sodium: 542mg Carbohydrates: 25g Fiber: 5g Sugar: 15g Protein: 44g