Chicken pathia with cauliflower bhaji

Prepare: less than 30 mins
Cook: 10 to 30 mins
Serve: Serves 2

Pathia is a subtly sweet and sour Persian curry. Here, it's served with a crisp and golden cauliflower bhaji and a cooling yoghurt dip.

By Matt Tebbutt

From Saturday Kitchen Best Bites

Ingredients

For the chicken pathia

2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, sliced
1 tbsp peeled and grated ginger
2 bay leaves
1 tsp turmeric
4 chicken thighs, skinless and boneless, diced
1 tsp cayenne pepper
4 tomatoes, chopped, or 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato purée
2 green chillies, chopped
2 tsp garam masala
1 tbsp tamarind
2 limes, juiced
1 tbsp sugar
300ml/½ pt chicken stock

For the cauliflower bhaji

1 small cauliflower, broken into small florets
1 onion, sliced
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp black mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
1 green chilli, chopped
1 tsp garam marala
250g/9oz chickpea flour
½ tsp baking powder
large pinch salt

For the dressing

150ml/¼ pt Greek yoghurt
1 bunch fresh coriander, chopped
1 bunch mint, chopped
1 lime, juiced
salt

To serve

1 bunch of coriander, chopped
steamed basmati rice, to serve

Method

To make the chicken pathia, in a large frying pan on medium heat, fry the onion, garlic and ginger in the vegetable oil. Add the bay, turmeric, and chicken and brown lightly before adding the cayenne pepper, tomatoes, purée, chillies, garam masala, tamarind, lime juice, sugar and the stock. Cook for 10–15 minutes. Season to taste and remove from the heat until ready to serve.
To make the cauliflower bhaji, blanch the cauliflower in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain and refresh under cold running water, then pop into a large bowl. Toss the onion and cauliflower together with a generous amount of salt and all the spices. Leave to marinate for 30 minutes before adding the chickpea flour and baking powder. Mix in150-200ml water to bind into a thick batter.
Fill a deep-fat fryer or pour 2cm of oil into a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan. Heat to 180C (a cube of bread should turn brown in one minute when dropped in.) CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave it unattended. Place a tablespoon of the mixture into the oil and cook until golden. Remove from the oil using a slotted spoon and drain on a kitchen paper-lined plate. Repeat until all of the mixture is used up, working in batches.
To make the dressing, blitz all the ingredients (apart from the salt) together in a blender, then taste and season with the salt. (If you don’t have a blender you can finely chop everything with a knife and mix in a small bowl.)
Serve the chicken pathia with steamed rice and cauliflower bhaji and drizzle. Top with chopped coriander and a side of fresh yoghurt and herb dressing.