Chicken Madras
Chicken Madras
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Kitchen Indian cuisine
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Basis Meat / fish
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Dish type Main course
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For who Chilli lovers
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Spiciness pepper pepper pepper
The dish
Chicken Madras is an Indian curry consisting of pieces of chicken in a spicy, tomato sauce. The word Madras refers to the use of a particular kind of curry powder – a precise mixture of herbs and spices from southern India, from the city of Chennai (formerly Madras).
Due to the climate in the south of India, chilli peppers flourish, which explains their enthusiastic use in the local kitchens. Indeed, dried, ground chilli peppers feature heavily in Madras curry powder, as does turmeric, coriander and cumin.
Although chicken Madras originated in India, according to Camellia Panjabi, author of the most popular curry cookbook in the world, 50 Great Curries of India, 95% of Indian people don’t know what chicken Madras is! Instead, the spicy dish as we know it was an invention of the British Bangledeshi restaurants of the 1970s. It is because of this that an authentic recipe is hard to find, so it is no surprise that there are many different variants of this dish available.
Did you know...?
In the Netherlands, home cooks often put pieces of apple in their chicken Madras. This is rarely seen in the British Isles but, depending on the chef, the heat can sometimes be unexpectedly intense. Unlike in other countries, you can regularly find the dish served with a baked potato or chips.
Preparation
For the Madras curry powder, the spices – dried chillies, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, peppercorns and curry leaves – are roasted in a dry pan, then ground in a mortar (or spice mill) and mixed with turmeric. A base of onion, garlic and ginger is sweated (cooked until soft and translucent, but not browned). The spice mixture is added to this base, and then the chicken is fried in it. After that, tomato cubes and water are added, and the whole thing is left to bubble for half an hour until the sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked through.
Each chef adds his own personal touch: in the Netherlands, it might be apple pieces, and in the Canada it could also be paprika, garlic, garam masala and extra chilli peppers.
Attention!
Chicken Madras is usually accompanied by rice, and the heat often calls for raita (a yoghurt-based sauce with other flavourings, such as cucumber and mint leaf) to be comfortably enjoyed.
Also try
Although this is one of the spicier curries on an Indian menu, vindaloo is even spicier. Milder options are chicken korma and chicken tikka masala.
