Chinese Takeaway Chicken Curry

Ingredients 

2 x large chicken thighs
1.5 x heads of garlic (heads not cloves!)
1 x onion
1 x pepper (preferably green but can use yellow)
1 x small potato + vegetables, I used a whole cauliflower but could use chinese vegetables like bamboo shoots and water chestnuts or baby corn on the cob
1 x heaped desert spoon cornflour
water
vegetable oil  

Spices
curry powder
chinese 5 spice
white pepper
ground ginger
turmeric
soy sauce
sugar
chicken stock jelly thing  

Utencils
chopping board for meat
chopping board for vegetables
chopping knife
large sauce pan
wooden spoon
collander
heat proof jug
desert spoon
tea spoon
ladle
mug
kettle  

 

Method 

1. Put chicken thighs into a sauce pan with 1 x garlic head cut in half, 1.5 heaped tea spoon of chinese 5 spice and 1.5 tea spoon of ground ginger. 

2. Cover thighs in boiling water from the kettle and bring to the boil. Simmer at a high to medium high heat for 40 minutes. 

3. While the chicken is cooking, chop the garlic and vegetables. Cut the onion long ways so you get strips of onion. 

4. When chicken has finished boiling, drain chicken in collander over the heatproof jug so that the chicken stock is captured. 

5. While the chicken cools, the cover bottom of a large sauce pan with oil. Don't bother to wash pan before hand. 

6. Put 1.5 x tea spoon chinese 5 spice, 1.5 x tea spoon of curry powder, 2 x heaped tea spoons of white pepper, 2 x heaped tea spoons of turmeric, 1 x tea spoon of ground ginger into oil and heat through for a minute or so to release oils in the spices. 

 7. Add in half head of garlic chopped finely or pressed, onion and cook until onion is translucent. 

8. Add in chopped peppers and other vegetables. Make sure the potato is chopped in 1cm cubes. Stir well so spices cover the vegetables. 

 8. Add in water so that it just covers the vegetables. Add in 1.5 x heaped tea spoon of sugar, a ladle full of soy sauce (lots) and a chicken stock jelly. Have heat on medium and leave to simmer. 

9. The chicken should be cool by now, so strip the meat off and add to the vegetables. Top up the level of the pan with the chicken stock saved in the jug. 

10. Taste. If it doesn't quite have the kick of a take way add in a teaspoon of white pepper. Leave to simmer for about 15 minutes. 

11. Check potatoes are cooked. If not cook a bit longer. 

12. Boil the kettle. In a mug put 1.5 heaped tea spoon of corn flour. Add in boiling water quarter of way up mug. Stir water and cornflour swiftly together so there are no lumps. If you do get lumps keep stirring vigorously. 

 13. Add cornflour solution to the pan and stir in well. You will notice that the curry will thicken and  develop a sheen :) 

14. Leave to simmer gently. If you are serving rice now is the time to boil your rice...usually this takes about 10 minutes. 

15. Serve with rice (or/and God forbid, chips!)  

Tip 

- Is freezable. 

- Some pineapple chopped in with the vegetables to further emphasise the sweetness.