Asiya Bajwani - Chicken and Curry - Pakistani Home Cooking

It is an exciting adventure open to all. I am going to share the finest dishes from my land in this book, along with fun serving ideas. If you have a true passion for tasting the great and the new, then this book is for you. Pakistan is a wonderland, well known for its spices and its colorful and tasty curries. Pakistani food is healthy, keeps you active and above all, it is less fattening. We believe that it is due to some of the spices used in our cooking which help to keep the food light and digestible.

Some people tend to spoil the quality of the dish by adding too much oil or not balancing the spice quantities. I assure you, it is not rocket science. You just need to keep the amount of the oil as low as possible. I promise you that your dishes will not resemble boiled vegetables and meat. As for the spices, you just need to know the intensity of flavor and aroma of each spice. It is actually very similar to preparing a cake.

When you begin your curry adventure, follow my simple recipe instructions to the letter. Once your curious taste buds can notice the changing flavors as quantities of the spices change in the different recipes, you will eventually be able to play with the ingredients without following my recipe instructions. If your taste buds are always hunting for something new and tasty, then these Indo Pak recipes are perfect for you. I am going to share only the best and favorite centuries-old local dishes with you. My lovely mom will be sharing her knowledge and expertise in these dishes. She will be preparing the dishes and just before eating them, I am going to capture the delightful, mouthwatering and exciting dishes with my camera so that I can share the visual delight with you too.

Our journey begins with shopping for the raw ingredients. The shopping list consists mainly of chicken, vegetables and a variety of colorful spices. I do not do a lot of planning; I let my nose and eyes lead me to find the very best in each recipe. The best thing I like about Lahore is its climate. It is not easily explained, but living here has a special spark to it. Everyone who visits Lahore feels the same sense of living in a big city, yet still close to nature.

How lonely you can sometimes feel, when you are in a remote area and you miss the buzz of the big city. On the other hand, when you are living in a crowded and packed city you can feel as if you have drawn your soul away from the lure of nature. Lahore gives you the flavor of both worlds and just like our cuisine, our land never ceases to pleasantly surprise. Are you ready to delve into this gastronomic wonderland? It is time for your spicy adventure.

It is good to buy spices in tightly packed cellophane packets because they maintain the aroma and flavor of spices. I did not buy yoghurt or butter, although we use it in our cooking. That is because we make our own. I have gathered some fine spices. I bought some ground spices because it is difficult to grind them yourself. Turmeric, for example, is so hard that only industrial grinding machines are efficient for grinding.

The domestic electric grinders are not good enough for such tough grinding. Having said that, some people do grind them at home. My mom ground her own spices with a stone grinder, in the past. It is quite hard work, but I have to admit that freshly ground turmeric smells and tastes so good in the food. Fresh is best. Most of the curry dishes only require up to half a teaspoon of turmeric powder, so if you have packet spices you will have a lot left over.

However, there are some brands that maintain their good quality, without artificial additives. If you prefer easy cooking to ground freshness, why not use them? There are some spices that I recommend buying in their original state. They are easy to grind and if you keep them in a pan for a few seconds before you grind them, grinding is even easier. Spices such as black cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, coriander seeds, carom seeds, mace, and the well-known black pepper, all smell so great and zesty in the food when they have been freshly ground. We have the custom of adding leaves to our dishes. I do not mean garnishing; we use leaves for cooking curry and rice.

The most well-known, are bay leaves and curry leaves. For heavier dishes with meat, vegetables, oil and rice, we usually include mint leaves every time. It lightens the dish and makes it very much more digestible. For garnishing, we often use freshly chopped coriander leaves. Most people here are not familiar with parsley at all because we do not use it. When choosing a chicken, we prefer using fresh rather than frozen.

We buy chicken from our local butcher, not far from our home. Who can refuse fresh chicken, and buy frozen instead? That, especially when you can buy a chicken that has been cleaned and chopped in the way you wish. Before showing you how to prepare Pakistan's finest chicken curry dishes, I am going to share some important tips with you, especially important for novice curry cookers. Take the time to read them. They are there to help you successfully prepare your curry dishes.
Asiyas Top Tips for Achieving a Great Chicken Curry Taste Cooking curry is an art.

There are some very delicate points that you have to take care of, to obtain a flavorful chicken curry taste. Beginners usually make some very common mistakes. I know this from my own experience. The first time I made curry was after watching a cooking program. I was so enthusiastic and decided that I would prepare it straightaway with no help. I asked my mom to leave me to cook on my own.

We had watched the show together and mom knew that the chef had not explained some important points. She tried to tell me that the way he had cooked the dish would leave a bad garlic smell, and the chicken would not be thoroughly cooked. However, I took no notice and the kitchen was mine that day. After following the recipe instructions, step-by-step, throwing in the ingredients and happily mixing them together, my resulting curry was nothing like the delicious looking outcome the chef had had! My mom has been cooking since she was a small child and knows exactly what works and what does not, and as hard as it is for me to admit it, I should have listened to her. Now, many years after that first experience, through trial and error, I have finally perfected my craft. In this book, I am going to share the specific things you should pay special attention to, including my mom's special tips that you just cannot go wrong with.

I want to eliminate all the guesswork and mystery from these Pakistani curry dishes for you, so that you will be successfully preparing them for many years to come. I have prepared some important points for you to bear in mind. I highly recommend that you read them before you attempt any of the chicken curry dishes in this book. Whichever curry dish you try, it is always a good idea to fry the chicken first; three tablespoons of oil is enough for a whole chicken. Lightly fry the chicken until the skin is cooked. Set the fried chicken aside while you follow whichever recipe you are preparing.