My younger brother is in town and after a full morning of bhatkofying around scottsdale, we needed a quick lunch. Gul has been trailing her mamoo and loving him endlessly. Its incredible to watch them together. My brother thankfully, also boycotted any Indian restaurants for the weekend! smart lad!

For our quick lunch , I made Karhai. I love making Karhai, its quick, nourishing and wholesome. You can use paneer to make it vegetarian. Recently, I’ve quit using red chilli powder in my cooking. Cumin has such wonderful flavor and can give any dish heat, without being as intense as red chilli powder.

Ingredients:

One chicken breast (boneless cut into 3-4 inch cubes) as well as a few pieces of bony chicken

One 32 ounce can of crushed tomato

One or two green finely chopped green chillies

Three cloves of garlic minced

Two inches of ginger finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped coriander

1/2 teaspoon powdered garam masala

One teaspoon cumin powder

One teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 cup olive oil

Method:

Heat oil in a wok or karhai. Add the garlic and ginger and fry till fragrant, only a few moments. Be careful not to let the garlic and ginger brown. Add the cumin and garam masala to the oil and also fry till you can smell the pungent aroma. Next, quickly add chicken to the masala and saute on high heat till semi cooked and golden (don’t brown it). Mix in the green chillies and give another whirl, still cooking on high heat.

Now add the canned tomato’s and coat the chicken with tomato while sauteing on high heat for 5-7 minutes till some of the juice evaporates. Add the black pepper, stir and lower the heat. Cook till the oil separates from the gravy.

Garnish with fresh coriander.