Today’s recipe kicks off a trifecta of Halloween offerings. As a certified foodie, I tend towards incorporating seasonal foods into the menu over gimmicky, themed foods, especially at Halloween. The main dish offering today features pumpkin in a richly seasoned but not too spicy version of tikka chicken curry. Spoiler alert: the recipes coming next week will feature apples in a dessert and a cocktail!
But back to today’s recipe. Canned pumpkin is called for in the recipe, but an equivalent amount of puree of fresh pumpkin, butternut squash, or acorn squash would also work. The flavor of the sauce is quite complex due to the 5+ spices in the mix. Those looking for additional spiciness can increase the amount of red chili flakes to the entire curry or to individual servings.
In my experience, dishes requiring longer prep times, some marinating or resting time, then some baking time worked well on Halloween evenings. I could get everything prepped and ready before Trick-or-Treating started, let it sit or marinate during the peak of the candy rush, then pop the meal into the oven as things were winding down. This meal works in just that way and is also a perfect entree throughout the Fall season!
Tikka Chicken with Pumpkin Curry
Tikka Chicken with Pumpkin Curry (adapted from food.com) Total Time Required: 3 hours, Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes, Marinate Time: 1 hour, Bake Time: 45 minutes, Makes: 6 servings
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into chunks
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 2 cups thinly sliced shallots (3 – 4 large shallots)
- 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and sliced crossways
- 8 fresh garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
- 2 cups canned pumpkin
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
- 5 tablespoons plain yogurt
- salt and pepper, to taste
- chopped cilantro & cooked white rice, for serving
Directions:
Place the cut-up chicken pieces in a 2-quart casserole dish with a tight-fitting lid. Season them lightly with salt and pepper. Mix the lime juice and honey together and pour it over the chicken chunks.
Salt & pepper the chicken then pour the honey mixture over it.
Add the cumin, turmeric, garam masala, cinnamon, cardamom, paprika, and chili flakes to a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat, stirring until they darken and become fragrant, about 3 – 5 minutes. Remove the spices from the heat. Transfer the dry spices to a medium bowl.
Toast the dry spices until fragrant.
Return the pan to the stove on medium heat, and cook the shallots in the oil, stirring constantly until they turn deep golden.
Caramelize the shallots.
Add the ginger and garlic to the shallots, and cook, stirring, until the shallots are a deep reddish brown and the garlic is golden.
Add the ginger and garlic to the shallots.
Transfer the mixture from the pan to the cup of a wand blender. Add half the coconut milk to the cup and blend the mixture together.
Blend the shallot mixture with some of the coconut milk.
Add the shallot mixture to the spice mixture in the bowl, then stir in the pumpkin and the rest of the coconut milk.
Combine the shallot mixture with the spices, pumpkin, and coconut milk
Use a whisk to beat the yogurt into the mix.
Add the yogurt to the curry mixture.
Pour the curry mixture over the chicken pieces and put a piece of foil over the top of the casserole dish before fitting the lid tightly over it. Allow the chicken to marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Pour the curry mixture over the chicken.
Towards the end of the marinating time, preheat the oven at 450ºF. When the marinating time is up, put the casserole into the oven, covered, and bake for about 40 minutes, until the chicken pieces reach an internal temperature of 165ºF.
Bake the curry until the chicken reaches in internal temperature 165ºF.
While the curry is baking, cook some rice. When the chicken is finished, sprinkle cilantro over the chicken.
Once baked, sprinkle cilantro over the curry.
Serve the chicken and sauce over the cooked rice.
Serve the chicken curry over cooked rice.
Pumpkin gives this curry seasonal flair! ~Linda
Tikka Chicken with Pumpkin Curry (adapted from food.com) Total Time Required: 3 hours, Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes, Marinate Time: 1 hour, Bake Time: 45 minutes, Makes: 6 servings
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into chunks
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 2 cups thinly sliced shallots (3 – 4 large shallots)
- 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and sliced crossways
- 8 fresh garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
- 2 cups canned pumpkin
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
- 5 tablespoons plain yogurt
- salt and pepper, to taste
- chopped cilantro & cooked white rice, for serving
Directions:
Place the cut-up chicken pieces in a 2-quart casserole dish with a tight-fitting lid. Season them lightly with salt and pepper. Mix the lime juice and honey together and pour it over the chicken chunks.
Add the cumin, turmeric, garam masala, cinnamon, cardamom, paprika, and chili flakes to a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat, stirring until they darken and become fragrant, about 3 – 5 minutes. Remove the spices from the heat. Transfer the dry spices to a medium bowl.
Return the pan to the stove on medium heat, and cook the shallots in the oil, stirring constantly until they turn deep golden. Add the ginger and garlic to the shallots, and cook, stirring, until the shallots are a deep reddish brown and the garlic is golden. Transfer the mixture from the pan to the cup of a wand blender. Add half the coconut milk to the cup and blend the mixture together. Add the shallot mixture to the spice mixture in the bowl, then stir in the pumpkin and the rest of the coconut milk. Use a whisk to beat the yogurt into the mix.
Pour the curry mixture over the chicken pieces and put a piece of foil over the top of the casserole dish before fitting the lid tightly over it. Allow the chicken to marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Towards the end of the marinating time, preheat the oven at 450ºF. When the marinating time is up, put the casserole into the oven, covered and bake for about 40 minutes, until the chicken pieces reach an internal temperature of 165ºF.
While the curry is baking, cook some rice. When the chicken is finished, sprinkle cilantro over the chicken. Serve the chicken and sauce over the cooked rice.