By Bornika Das
Kolkata style chicken bhorta is a rich, creamy, delicious chicken curry either cooked with shredded chicken or thin strips of boneless chicken. The chicken is cooked in onion-tomato gravy with ginger-garlic paste, cashew nut-poppy seeds paste, chopped boiled eggs, fresh cream and minimal spices. It is a thick luscious chicken curry mostly served with naan, paratha or tandoori roti.
1 kg boneless chicken 5 boiled eggs 1 chopped tomato 4 chopped onions 1 tbsp ginger paste 1 tbsp garlic paste 5-6 green chillies 2 tbsp cashew paste 1 tbsp char magaj (melon seeds) paste 100 ml hung curd 50 ml fresh cream 1 tbsp butter 3 tbsp oil
2 bay leaves 2 tsp kasuri methi 1 red chilli 4 clove 1” cinnamon stick 1 tsp turmeric powder 1 tsp red chilli powder 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp garam masala ½ tsp chicken tandoori masala Salt to taste
Wash the boneless chicken. Boil them with salt for 5-6 minutes. Stain the water and keep it separately.
Leave half of the chicken cubes as it is. Shred the rest of the chicken.
Add oil in a pan. Temper the oil with bay leaves, red chilli, clove, cinnamon stick and Kasuri methi.
Add the chopped onions. Saute till translucent in colour. Add chopped tomatoes, ginger-garlic paste, slit green chillies. Saute well.
Add the masalas – turmeric powder, red chilli powder, tandoori powder, sugar and salt. Cook till the oil separates.
Add Cashew nut Paste, Char Magaj Paste, Hung Curd, and Fresh Cream. Cook till the nutty aroma evaporates.
Add the boiled chicken as well as the shredded chicken. Cook for 5 minutes. Add water and again cook till a thick consistency is achieved.
Take 3 eggs, separate the egg yolks from wgg white. Mash the egg yolks and cut egg white into long strips. Add both the mashed egg yolks and egg whites into the chicken bhorta.
Add butter, garam masala, and kasuri methi.
Serve with half cut boiled eggs