Chicken Rezala

I first had this amazingly delicious dish at my Bua's place in Kolkata, some 10 years ago. Chicken prepared in a white sauce was not known to be back then. Chicken Rezala is an authentic Bengali Chicken Curry, invented by the Royal chefs of Bengal. Here goes the recipe:

Ingredients:

1.    Whole cut up chicken - 1 kg

2.    Onion paste - 1 cup

3.    Ginger garlic paste - 2 tbsp

4.    Whole Cashew - 8-10 pieces

5.    Poppy seeds - 2 tbsp

6.    Curd - 1 cup

7.    Cinnamon sticks - 2

8.    Green cardamom pods - 4-5

9.    Cloves - 4-5

10. Black peppercorns - 8 - 10

11. Bay leaf - 1

12. Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp

13. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp

14. Kewra water - 1 tsp

15. Salt & sugar - as per taste

16. Ghee - 2 tablespoons

17. Vegetable oil - 2 tablespoons

Serves: 4

Preparation:

1. Make a smooth paste of cashew & poppy seeds in a grinder and keep aside.
2. Now take a large bowl and marinate the chicken pieces with onion paste, ginger & garlic paste, curd, salt and keep aside for 1 hour.
3. After an hour, take a nonstick pan and heat ghee and oil together. Fry the whole spices (Cinnamon sticks, Cloves, Green cardamom pods, Black peppercorns and Bay leaf) till the fragrance comes from the spices. Add the marinated chicken along with the marination and cover the pan and cook on medium heat for 20 minutes.
4. After 20 minutes, open the lid and add the cashew & poppy seed paste, white pepper powder, coriander powder and sugar and mix with the chicken and cook with lid on medium heat for another 20 minutes.
5. After 20 minutes, open the lid and boil the gravy till it becomes creamy in texture on high heat. Add kewra water and stir well and serve with naan or pulao or biryani.