Bhuna curries are popular on the British Indian takeout scene - you’ll often hear this name alongside Jalfrezis, Karahis and Dopiazas. But the problem is, I’ve tried my fair share of curries from these take outs and honestly? Lacklustre at best. As any Asian may be able to attest, a lot of curries out there are just the same creamy, sweet base used for everything. Everything tastes the same. Just with different ingredients. OK, I won’t taint EVERY British Indian restaurant with the same brush, that would be wrong, but I have not had particularly pleasant curry dine-outs on any of my holidays around the country,
What makes a good Chicken Bhuna curry then?
So first of all, lets go ahead and put that shaker of curry powder to the side. Sorry, got nothing against the use of curry powder, but we’re after the real deal, amiright? So for that, I’m going to getting in the spices that actually make the curry powder, but in my own quantities. Here’s what else makes a good Chicken Bhuna
Fresh ingredients - onion, ginger, garlic, tomatoes - all fresh, no compromises! The garnishes - chillis and fresh coriander are a must A thick, tasty, well spiced masala which is made from caramelised, melted onions and garlic and jammy tomatoes A small variety of aromatic spices. In my recipe, I don’t use anything particularly fancy, but the coriander and cumin play a pretty central role in the flavour. The actual technique of the ‘Bhun’, which I’ll tell you about next
What’s a Chicken Bhuna curry?
‘Bhuna’ refers to a technique in cooking in which the meat is seared or sautéed on high heat. It’s a technique which is paramount in all Pakistani cooking. It’s generally accepted amongst the best Pakistani cooks that no curry is worth the effort if it hasn’t had a good ‘bhun’ session, also known as ‘sautéing it till it can no longer be sautéed any more’. Bhuna Masala curries are usually a dry curry with a thicker masala and no soupiness, like my No Effort Bhuna Gosht Masala. The difference between the No Effort Bhuna Gosht Masala recipe and this Bhuna Chicken is that the searing in the Gosht happens at the end. The searing here will happen towards the beginning. This results is a jammier masala where the onions and tomatoes melt into one another much better. I’ve written about this with a lot of gusto and passion (lol) in my Matar Keema recipe here. You can check that post out too after you’ve read this if you want to know more about the ‘Bhun’.
How can you serve Chicken Bhuna?
Garnish this Chicken Bhuna curry with plenty of coriander and a couple of red chillies if you’re feeling up to it! On this instance had this with warm chapattis on the first day and rice the next day and they were both equally as good. It’s what’s so great about this curry, it’s just such a non-fussy dish! It would go great with Mattar Pilau too!
Some additional, good-to-know tips for Chicken Bhuna brilliance
Whilst this recipe doesn’t utilise whole spices, you can actually throw in a few black peppercorns for some extra heat, or a few whole cardamoms (black or green) for a sweet fragrance. I prefer my curry as the recipe is just out of personal preference to not have that strong garam masala kind of flavour, but if that’s your jam, go for it! The best kind of salad to serve alongside this is either a kachumbar salad (simple diced onions, tomatoes and cucumber) or some onions doused in vinegar for a kick. Delicious! As with ALL recipes, the quality of your ingredients matter. Always opt for fresh wherever you can. If you can get hold of organic chicken, that is GREAT - but you will need to increase cook times by about 30 minutes extra If you can dry roast your spices before using them, then my friend, you will be BLOWN AWAY by the flavour. This tip applies to all curries, not just this. To dry roast your spices, heat a dry pan, preferably cast iron, until it’s hot and add one spice at a time. Roast this, stirring it constantly until it begins to release smoke. Immediately upon the releasing of smoke, remove the spice from the pan, and then proceed onto the next spice.
Enjoy, with love x
📋 Recipe
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