Narikel Dudeh’r Murgi

In Bengali cuisine, there aren’t a lot of creative names for our dishes. We just call them exactly what they are. For example, “Narikel Dudeh’r Murgi” literally translates to “Coconut Milk Chicken.” Which also makes it easier to know exactly what you’re eating. Haha.

If you aren’t aware coconut is a very perdominat produce or flavour used in the cusine of the Indian Subcontinent.

Ingredients

• 2 lb bone-in chicken thighs or whole chicken cut into pieces
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 cup onions, sliced
• 2 teaspoon ginger, paste
• 2 teaspoon garlic, paste
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1/2 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 tablespoon ghee
• 4 to 6 bird’s eye chillies, cut down the middle
• 1 bunch cilantro, chopped (to garnish)

Directions

1. In a heavy-bottomed pan or dutch oven — heat up 2 tablespoons of ghee.
2. Once heated up, add mustard seeds, cinnamon stick, bird’s eye chillies, bay leaves, and toast for a minute before adding ginger and garlic paste. Cookout paste for another minute before adding in the rest of the spices.
3. Cook the spices for 2 to 3 minutes or until the oil separates. (Feel free to add a splash of water to avoid burning the spices.)
4. Once the spices are cooked out, add a can of coconut milk and give it a good stir—cover and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Check the base after 5 minutes and add in the chicken. Make sure that all the chicken pieces are covered with the curry base before covering and cooking for 20 to 25 minutes on medium heat.
6. Make sure to check the chicken at the 10 minutes mark to see if the base is reduced too much — if needed, add in a splash of or up to a cup of water if required.
7. Serve the chicken with some steamed basmati or some fluffy naan, and enjoy!