Chicken & Potato Tikka Masala | Recipe

The weather is finally getting to that point where I'm starting to feel the cold (it took long enough - it certainly still doesn't feel like November in England). As the weather gets colder, I really love trying out more spicy foods to warm myself up. I'm a massive curry fan, Indian Tikka Masala or Dopiaza and Thai red and green curries. While the curry sauces you can buy ready made in jars from the supermarket are yummy, nothing compares to making your own curry from scratch - and one of my favourite curries to make from scratch is a chicken and potato Tikka Masala.

Tikka Masalas are one of my favourite curries. I am much more of a fan of curries that a packed with flavours than those which are designed to be hot hot hot, so this is the perfect curry for the whole family, full of flavour and goodness! There's a lot of ingredients in this recipe, so it can become quite expensive if you are needing to buy all the ingredients to start with, but once you have them in your kitchen cupboard, this curry will be really cheap to reproduce, along with a variety of different curries from many countries! This recipe will make enough curry for 10 servings, so it's perfect for a dinner party, or to keep in your fridge or freezer for a number of family dinners. So, here's what you'll need:

For the Tikka Masala paste:

2 tbsp coriander seeds

2 tbsp cumin seeds

2 tbsp garlic powder

2 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp garam masala

1 tbsp ground ginger

1 tsp turmeric

1 small handful fresh mint

A pinch of salt

1 tsp lemon juice

150ml white wine vinegar

150ml vegetable oil

35ml water

For the curry:

75ml vegetable oil

25g salted butter

4 onions, roughly chopped

6 tbsp of your Tikka Masala paste

2 red peppers, roughly chopped

8 boneless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
3 baking potatoes, chopped into small chunks

800g tinned chopped tomatoes

4 tbsp tomato pureé

3 tbsp mango chutney

150ml double cream

150ml natural yoghurt

1 handful of fresh coriander

200ml water

750g wild rice

Step 1 > Making Your Tikka Masala Paste

Using a pestle and mortar, grind together your cumin and coriander seeds to a powder before adding the garlic powder, paprika, garam masala, ground ginger and turmeric and stirring together. To a saucepan, stir your ground spices with the mint, salt and lemon juice with 2 tbsp of water and put onto a medium heat. Once your mix starts to bubble, add the white wine vinegar to make a thin pasta consistency. Add the oil and leave to simmer, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes over a medium heat until all the water is absorbed and it resembles a pesto-consistency paste. This will make 230ml (or 12 tbsp) of paste, enough for a 20 person curry. You can keep the paste in an air tight container to use as and when you need it.

Step 2 > Prepare Your Curry Base

Every good curry starts with a base of onions and spices. Heat the oil and butter in a large saucepan with a lid before adding the onions and salt. Leave your onions to sweat with the lid on for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and starting to brown. Add your homemade Tikka Masala paste and the pepper and cook for 5 minutes more until the peppers start to soften.

Step 3 > Add Your Curry Ingredients & Make Rice

Add the chicken, and stir well to coat all the chicken in the paste. Once the flesh on your chicken has started to turn a cooked white colour, add in the potato, tinned chopped tomatoes and tomato pureé with the water. Stir well and then leave to simmer with the lid on for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check your chicken is fully cooked after 15 minutes, and if not, leave to simmer for 5 minutes more until cooked. Get another saucepan and add boiling water on a medium heat. Once bubbling, add your wild rice - this is portioned at 75g per person. Stir your rice until the water starts to bubble again and leave for 12 minutes from this point. Turn down the heat once the chicken is cooked and leave to simmer until the curry becomes slightly thicker.

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Step 4 > Add Your Final Ingredients

Add in your mango chutney, cream and yoghurt, leaving a couple of teaspoons of cream for the end and stir well. Leave for about 10 minutes for the cream and yoghurt to warm through. Don't forget to check your rice after the 12 minutes have passed. Once cooked, drain and serve. Give your curry once last stir and serve with your rice. Finish off by scattering with your chopped coriander leaves and a teaspoon of double cream swirled over the top.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and have fun making curry from scratch at home - it's something I love doing, but don't do very often! Let me know in the comments below what your favourite curry is to eat or indeed make from scratch.