My friend Nita recently pointed out a historic convergence – the rare alignment of Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Ramadan, Lunar New Year and Bear Moon, the full moon in January or February observed by Native American tribes as marking the time when bear cubs are born in their winter dens symbolizing the return of light, strength and renewal. She said it will be 160 years before this happens again.
Strangely enough, around this same time, I enjoyed my own convergence – albeit on a much smaller scale – and it involved Indian food.
I had never eaten Indian food until March of 2017 when our friends Fulton and Aaron turned us onto Himalaya Restaurant in Houston, owned by the delightful Chef Kaiser Lashkari and his lovely wife Azra. Fulton ordered for the table and we enjoyed authentic Indian and Pakistani food family-style. Everything we ate was delicious and we try to get back to Himalaya every chance we get.
Recently engrossed in a cooking competition on TV to unwind (Next Level Chef), I watched as one of the contestants whipped up some naan to go along with her entree. She fretted at first that it wouldn’t turn out. However, it did and the judges raved over it. Hmmm. Not being much of a baker, I’d never thought about making my own naan, and certainly wouldn’t have expected it to be so easy.
If you’re not familiar, naan is a soft, leavened flatbread from Central and South Asia, traditionally baked in a tandoor (clay oven) and often made with flour, yogurt and eggs, giving it a fluffy texture perfect for soaking up sauces or as a wrap. It’s distinct from everyday flatbreads because it uses a leavening agent (like yeast) and is cooked at very high heat, resulting in a pillowy interior with a slightly charred exterior. Common variations include garlic naan, brushed with butter and garlic.
Occasionally, when I’m at a loss for what to cook, I’ll turn to some of my favorite cooking blogs for inspiration. One of those is halfbakedharvest.com. Check it out yourself and you’ll see exactly why. It has some of the most beautiful pictures of food that I’ve ever seen. And though I’ve not cooked a lot of the recipes on the site, the ones I have were fairly easy and straightforward. As I was checking out the pictures, I ran across a recipe for spicy Indian butter chicken and realized immediately that it had been far too long since we had enjoyed any Indian food.
Made with spices, tomato, butter and cream, butter chicken is one of the most popular Indian curries served around the world. It’s rich and warming, but the spice blend is really what makes this dish.
Upon further reading, it said the dish is best served with naan. Of course it is. I Googled naan and checked out the first recipe that popped up. It was from a site called recipetineats.com and the blogger, Nagi Maehshi, said, “So many naan recipes are nothing more than a basic flatbread recipe. But this one? Fluffy, bubbly and chewy, just like you get at Indian restaurants. It’s so incredible, you’d swear it’s just been pulled from a tandoor! Bonus: It’s mind-bogglingly easy. Yes, really!”
It was obvious – to me, at least – that the stars (or something) had lined up just so and I was to make Indian food and homemade naan. Okay then. I was game. I’d recommend starting the naan first, as it takes roughly two hours for the dough to rise. While it’s rising, you can begin the spicy butter chicken. We thoroughly enjoyed our spicy Indian butter chicken and naan. Neither was difficult and I’ll definitely make both again. We love spicy food and it is definitely spicy, so if that’s not your thing, then I’d recommend either using less cayenne pepper and crushed red pepper flakes or perhaps omitting them completely. I’m already looking forward to my next foray into cooking Indian food.
From halfbakedharvest.com
In a bowl, toss together the chicken, yogurt, 3 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon ginger, 2 teaspoons garam masala, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon turmeric, ½-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, and 1 teaspoon salt. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sear on both sides until browned, about 2 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon butter and toss to coat the chicken. Remove the chicken from the skillet to a plate.
To the skillet, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until softened. Add 2 tablespoons butter, 3 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon ginger, 1 tablespoon garam masala, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon turmeric, ½-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, and the chili flakes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until very fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes.
Reduce the heat to low. Add 1 cup water and the coconut milk. Stir to combine, bring the sauce to a simmer, cook for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. Stir in 1 tablespoon butter. If the sauce seems thick, thin with ½ to 1 cup additional coconut milk. Add the chicken and any juices on the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve the chicken and sauce over bowls of rice with fresh naan. Enjoy!
My notes:
If you can’t find garam masala, you may use curry powder instead.
I used 1 cup of heavy cream in place of the 14-oz. can of full-fat coconut milk.
From recipetineats.com
Finishes:
Bloom yeast: Mix yeast with warm water and sugar in a small bowl. Cover with cling wrap, leave for 10 minutes until foamy.
Egg and milk: Whisk milk and egg together.
Flour: Sift flour and salt into a separate bowl.
Add wet ingredients: Make a well in the flour, add yeast mixture, and butter and egg mixture. Mix together with a spatula. Once the flour is mostly incorporated, switch to your hands and bring it together into a ball. No kneading is required.
Proof 1: Cover the bowl with cling-wrap, then leave in a warm place for 1-1½ hours until it doubles in size.
Cut into 6 pieces: Place the dough on a lightly floured surface. Cut into 6 equal pieces, then shape into balls with a smooth surface by stretching the surface and tucking it under.
Proof 2: Place balls on a lightly-floured tray or plate. Sprinkle lightly with flour, cover loosely with a lightweight tea towel. Put in a warm place to rise for 15 minutes until it increases in size by about 50%.
Roll out: Place a round on a lightly-floured work surface, flatten with your hand. Roll out into rounds that are approximately 6½ inches wide and ¼-inch thick.
Heat skillet: Rub a cast iron skillet with a very light coat of oil using ½ teaspoon oil on a paper towel (unless already well seasoned). Set over high heat until you see wisps of smoke.
Cook naan: Place a naan dough in the skillet and cook for 1-1½ minutes until the underside is deep golden/slightly charred – the surface should get bubbly. Flip then cook the other side for 1 minute until the bubbles become deep golden brown.
Cook remaining naan: Remove, set aside, and repeat with remaining naan, taking care to regulate the heat of the skillet so it doesn't get too hot.
Finishing: Brush freshly cooked naan with melted butter or ghee. Sprinkle with nigella seeds and coriander. Serve hot!
My notes:
I brushed melted butter on mine, but didn’t fool with the nigella seeds or the coriander.
