CHICKEN MIKEY MASALA

For those of you who know me, you know my experience with chicken masala has been the worst of times aaaaand the worst of times.  The night my now ex-roommate forced me to each her putrid chicken tikka masala is still burned into my memory (and my organs) for all eternity.  (For the full story, see my YouTube cartoon: Because Your Gonna Eat It, That's Why.)  So when my friend Mike -- who knows that whole gory tale -- put a masala recipe before me, I admit -- I balked.

Then I read the recipe.  Not anywhere near simple but happily not containing a single drop of lemon juice (my roommate had squeezed a whole orchard, I think, for her nightmarish concoction) and I was willing to give it a try because I trust my Brudda Mikey.  Everything he makes smells awesome.

Oh, and by the by, I should let you know I've been holding out on you a bit.  I have a spice cabinet that would make you wilt, but I thought it best not to overwhelm you by putting such things on the list.  They're negligible non-contenders anyway.  So let's do this thing.

Cross these babies off, yo!

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion

5 cloves garlic

1 can diced tomatoes*

1/8 tsp ground ginger*

2 roasted chicken patties*

½ cup water (approximately)

1 tsp garam masala

  

Masala Seasoning:

2 tsp garlic salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp powdered cayenne pepper

1 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp ground ginger

Garnish:

1 cup raisins.  Yes, that's right.  Raisins.

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts

Rice:

1 cup rice

2 cups water

Long list, eh?  Don't be daunted!  It's all gonna be okay.

DIRECTIONS

1. Soak raisins (for garnish) in a bowl of water for at least 1 hour.  
2. Add rice to water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, until rice is fluffy like a cloud (About 15 minutes).
3. Prepare masala seasoning by mixing garlic salt, cinnamon, coriander, cayenne pepper, black pepper, cumin, and 1 tsp ground ginger.  Set aside.
4. Chop onion and mince or press garlic.
5. Drain tomatoes into a small bowl.  Set tomato juice aside.
6. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pan and mix in 2 tsp of masala seasoning (mix about 30 seconds).  Add onion, garlic, tomatoes, and ginger.  Mix thoroughly into spiced oil and cook covered on medium-high for 5-7 minutes.  Uncover and cook 2-4 more minutes (until cooked down).  This is where it starts smelling aaaawesooooome.
7. Cut chicken patties into chunks and microwave until warm. 
8. Pour tomato juice (from the canned tomatoes) into a 1-cup measuring cup.  Fill the rest with water.
9. Add chicken, tomato water, and 2 tsp of masala seasoning.  Bring to a boil. 
10. Add remainder of masala seasoning plus 1 tsp garam masala and mix thoroughly. 
11. Cook uncovered on medium-high until sauce is thick.  Remove from heat and set aside.
12. Drain raisins.  In a separate pan, fry sunflower seeds, peanuts, and raisins in 2 tsp olive oil on medium-high for about 5 minutes.
13. Serve chicken and sauce over white rice with raisin and nut garnish.

*I should mention I've made some alternations to Mike's recipe to fit with the ingredients I had on hand.  His recipe calls for 3 fresh tomatoes (instead of canned), 1 inch fresh ginger (in place of the powder), and 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts in place of the chicken patties.   If you use raw chicken, replace steps 10-11 above with these:

• Add remainder of Masala and mix thoroughly
• Cover and cook on Medium-Low until chicken is done (8-10 minutes)
• Uncover and add 1 Tsp of Garam Masala

Mike's recipe also called for slivered almonds, but when I took them out, grossly stale.  Today's casualty of war: the slivered almonds.  But never you fear; I have sliced ones still.

But I digress.  This dish is actually a combo deal: a thicker version of Chicken Masala (with more heft, less sauce) and Kabsa, an Arabian meat dish covered in nuts and raisins.  And by the way, when I started this whole escapade, I definitely did not say to myself "Hell yes!  This is my opportunity to fry up some raisins, son!" but I'm beginning to think it should be my anthem.  Hot raisins?  Duuuuuude.

A couple warnings, though.  If you're a lightweight like me, go easy on the cayenne pepper.  In fact, you may want to leave it out and add it as needed.  I was hurtin' the first night I ate this.  Hur. Ting.  The second night I went heavier on the rice, so that made it better.  I also do not recommend using pre-cooked chicken patties.  They tasted too salty and processed and took away from the rest of the dish.

So based on my cooking of the dish with what I had on hand...
Official Grade: B

Based on what it probably should taste like with the right ingredients, likely an A.  Thanks, Mike!  Glad to have something new and different for the tasty-buds.