Methi malai chicken recipe | Methi chicken | Murgh methi malai
Methi malai chicken is prepared with chicken & fresh methi (fenugreek) leaves cooked in mildly spicy creamy onion-tomato gravy. This delicious Methi Chicken or Murgh Methi malai is an easy chicken curry that can be made within 30 minutes.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 380kcal
Equipment
- Heavy bottom pan
Ingredients
To marinate the chicken
- 700 gram chicken (bone-in chicken)
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper powder
- salt to taste
- ¼ cup thick curd/yogurt
To sauté methi leaves
- 1 teaspoon ghee/clarified butter
- 2 cups of Methi leaves (Fenugreek leaves)
To make onion-tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 2 onions, sliced
- 2 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
- 7-8 cashews
- 3 tomatoes
To make the methi chicken gravy
- 2 teaspoon oil
- 2 green cardamoms
- 4 cloves
- 1- inch cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2-3 green chilies, slit
- ¼ cup thick cream (or use homemade malai)
- coriander leaves
Instructions
Preparations:
- Pluck & clean the methi leaves. Set it aside.
- Roughly chop the onions & tomatoes. Set it aside.
- Slit the green chilies and chop the coriander leaves.
Marinate the chicken
- In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala powder, black pepper powder, salt & curd/yogurt. Marinate & set it aside.
Saute the methi leaves
- Heat 1 teaspoon of ghee/clarified butter over medium heat. Saute the methi leaves for 3-4 minutes until it is wilted. Remove & set it aside.
Prepare the onion-tomato paste
- In the same pan, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium heat.
- Saute onions until translucent.
- Add ginger-garlic paste & cook it for 2 minutes.
- Add cashews & tomato. Cook until tomatoes are soft & pulpy.
- Let it cool down & then grind it to a paste. Do not add water. The onion-tomato paste is ready.
Making the Methi Chicken gravy
- Heat 2 teaspoon of oil over medium heat. Saute the whole spices for 30 seconds.
- Add the prepared onion-tomato paste. Cook it for 3-4 minutes.
- Add marinated chicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the color of the chicken changes from pink to white.
- Cover & cook until chicken is cooked well. Stir it in between as required.
- Add the methi leaves, lemon juice & ½ cup water.
- Cover & cook for 5 minutes.
- Add green chilies, cream & coriander leaves. Cover & cook for a minute. Remove from heat.
- Delicious Methi Malai Chicken is ready to serve.
Video
Notes
- Pick fresh methi leaves with tender stems. They are not bitter in taste.
- Clean the methi leaves by plucking the leaves only. Discard the stems. Stems are bitter in taste. So be careful to use only the leaves. This is a time-consuming process. The preparation time does not include time to clean methi leaves.
- Rinse the methi leaves with water to discard the dust, soil, etc.
- Fill a large bowl with enough water. Mix 1 teaspoon of vinegar in it. Soak the methi leaves in water for 5 minutes.
- Rinse it well with water. Drain it into a colander. Make sure it is dry before you process to the next step.
- You can use the methi leaves as it is or roughly chop it. Do not chop it finely. Finely chopping the leaves can increase the bitterness.
- If fresh methi leaves are not available then you can use Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) in its place.
- Just use ¼ cup of dried fenugreek leaves & add it in the place of sautéed methi. Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) have a strong flavor. ¼ cup of Kasuri methi is enough to flavor the methi chicken gravy.
- You can skip adding cream to the gravy. The addition of cashews is enough to make the gravy thick & creamy. However, the addition of cream makes the chicken curry sweet & reduces the bitterness of methi leaves.
Nutrition
Calories: 380kcal