Recipes

Lahori chicken karahi: tomatoes, no onion, and the spices in the right order

لاہوری چکن کڑاہی

Last reviewed 15 November 20263 min read

Short answer

Seal 1 kg chicken in hot oil, add ginger-garlic paste and about 500 g tomatoes, cover until the tomatoes collapse, then add red chilli powder, crushed chilli, dhania and haldi and bhuno on high until the oil separates. Finish with green chillies, julienned ginger, black pepper, roasted zeera and garam masala.

Makes:: Serves 4
Prep:: 15 min
Cook:: 35 min

Ingredients

1 kg chicken, karahi cut
½ cup oil (or half oil, half ghee)
500 g tomatoes (5–6 medium), halved or chopped
1 tbsp ginger paste and 1 tbsp garlic paste
1 tsp salt, or to taste
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp crushed red chilli
1 tsp coriander powder
¼ tsp turmeric
½ tsp white cumin, dry-roasted and crushed
½ tsp black pepper and ½ tsp garam masala
4–5 green chillies, a 2-inch piece of ginger in thin strips, fresh coriander

Method

Heat the oil in a karahi on high. Add the chicken and cook for 5–6 minutes, stirring, until it turns white on all sides.
Add the ginger and garlic pastes and stir for 1 minute until the raw smell goes.
Add the tomatoes, cover and cook on medium for 8–10 minutes until they are completely soft. Pick out any loose skins.
Add salt, red chilli powder, crushed chilli, coriander powder and turmeric. Bhuno on high, stirring and mashing the tomatoes, for 8–10 minutes, until the masala is thick and the oil separates at the sides.
Check the chicken is cooked through (no pink near the bone). If it needs longer, add a splash of water, cover and cook on low for 5 minutes.
Add the green chillies, ginger strips, black pepper, roasted zeera and garam masala. Cook 2 minutes more on high.
Turn off the heat, scatter fresh coriander and serve straight from the karahi with naan or roti.

Why the order of spices matters

Powdered spices go in after the tomatoes have softened, so they cook in the masala instead of burning in hot oil. That is when red chilli gives its colour and dhania its body.

The aromatics go in at the end: roasted zeera, black pepper and garam masala lose their smell if they cook too long. Two minutes is enough.

Two kinds of chilli, two jobs

Red chilli powder melts into the masala for colour and an even heat. Crushed red chilli stays in flakes and gives the bursts of heat a dhaba karahi is known for. Most karahi recipes use both.

Variations

White karahi: skip the tomatoes and red chilli; cook the chicken with dahi, black pepper, green chillies and cream. Mutton karahi: same masala, but cook the mutton covered with a cup of water until tender before adding tomatoes.

Keep spices away from the stove and the pouch sealed after use, so the colour and smell last.