Introduction
Shahi Gravy
It’s an awesome blend of spices with onions and green chillies. Many alterations can be given to this gravy but here the basic recipe is given.
Instructions
Cashew nuts can be blanched and made into a paste. Even onions, green chillies, ginger and garlic can be made into a paste and added separately. But here I have added everything together without blanching to make it simple for the beginners.
Some foundation ingredients that can be used in this gravy are- chicken, mutton, paneer
Ingredients
Whole garam masala
4 cloves
2 cardamoms
2 cinnamon (1 inch)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp cumin seeds 5 tbsp butter/oil
3 big onions
5 green chillies 25 g cashew nuts 1 pod garlic
1-inch ginger 100 ml curds
100 ml cream
½ tsp poppy seeds
2-3 strands of saffron dissolved in 1 tsp of water
½ tsp salt or salt to taste
Method
Take a kadai or a heavy thick bottomed pan or a cast-iron skillet and heat it. Add 2 tbsps butter/oil and allow it to get heated
Add whole garam masala (cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaf, cumin seeds). Allow the flavour of the spices to blend with the oil for 2 minutes
Then add onions and green chillies and stir fry for few minutes
Then add ginger and garlic. Stir fry for few minutes.
Now add cashewnuts and poppyseeds and sauté till the onions become translucent.
Cool it and grind it in a mixie after removing the bay leaves. Randomly select ginger, garlic and cashew and grind them. Then add the other ingredients. Do not add water initially. Then keep adding water little by little.
Take another pan and heat it. Add 2 tbsp of butter/oil. Allow the butter/oil to heat for 2 minutes. Transfer the ground masala to the heated pan. Keep heating and stirring it in low flame until the moisture goes.
Then add cream and curd. Add the saffron and keep stirring. Sprinkle some salt to taste.
Add the Foundation ingredient to the pan and mix well.
Cook for about 20 minutes or till the oil separates. Closed the lid while cooking so that it does not splatter.
Note: The cooking time depends on the foundation ingredients used. You can refer the cooking table for the details.
