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Chicken dhansak for Davepreston

serves 4
1kg chicken breast diced
1tbsp ginger and garlic paste
2tsp cumin powder
1tsp coriander powder
1/5tsp black mustard seeds
2 bay leaves
6 dried red chilles )or use 1tsp chilli flakes
2 inch cinnamon stick
2tbsp ghee
10 peppercorns

1tsp turmeric
1 large onion
4 green cardamoms
1tsp fennel seeds
4oz red lentils
6tbsp oil
1tsp rock salt
1tsp tamarind paste
1tsp garam masala
1tbsp fresh coriander leaves chopped

Put the diced chicken into a large bowl. Add the ginger and garlic paste, cumin and coriander and mix well. Allow to marinade in the fridge for at leat 1 hour, longer if you can.
Put the ghee (clarified butter) into a large pan over a medium to hight heat and add the cinnamon stick, bay leaves, mustard seeds and black peppercorns. (If you have the dried chillies, add them now).
When you start to hear these spitting and popping, quickly pour in the chicken pieces and turn the heat down to low and stir around until most of the chicken has started to go white. Cover with a tight fitting lid and cook for 20 mins, checking regularly to avoind sticking.

Now put oil in a seperate pan and add 1 roughly chopped onion, the salt,
fennel seeds, turmeric, tamarind paste and cardamom pods and cook over a low heat until the onion has softened. Now add the red lentils and 1pint water and stir well.
Leave this to simmer, covered for 15 minutes. At 15 minutes, stir the lentils and start to crush them with the back of a spoon in the pan to break them down.
Put the cover back on and cook for a further 15 minutes, checking occasionally.
When the chicken has been cooking for 20 minutes, remove the lid and give it a stir.
Take it off the heat and leave to stand while the lentils finish.
When the lentils have finished, you should have a sauce that is thickening nicely.
Add the lentils to the chicken and now is the time to remove the cardamom pods, bay leaves and cinnamon stick if you don't want them in the finished dish.
Stir it all together well and add the garam masala and the chilli flakes if you are using them.
If you want to, add the chilli flakes a little at a time, tasting as you go,
but this should have a good amount of heat to it. Allow the dish to simmer now, uncovered for 30 minutes until you have a good thick consistency and it is ready to serve. If it's already thick, add a little more water to allow for the 30 minutes cooking time to stop it drying out.
To finish, just stir through the coriander leaves!
I serve just with rotis and pakoras, but you can also serve with rice.

Hope you enjoy.

Not the healthiest in the world, but certainly not the worst either!