Want restaurant-style Chicken Curry at home? MasterChef Pankaj Bhadouria reveals 5 secrets

Chicken Curry is a universally loved meat preparation that every non-vegetarian enjoys. When enjoying it at a restaurant, the orangish gravy, shining fat on top, and super juicy chicken pieces make it a culinary extravaganza. But, home-cooked chicken often disappoints people. Do you also experience that when you make chicken curry at home, it doesn't taste as good as in a restaurant? It often happens that the gravy remains thin, and the chicken flavor doesn't infuse into the gravy at all. If you can relate tp this problem, then MasterChef Pankaj Bhadouria has your back. In a recent post on Instagram, she shared a reel where she explained 5 secrets that can help in getting the same texture, colour, and taste at home. Scroll down to read the details.

First of all we need the right chicken. We always have to use chicken with bone. Why? Because bone gives a deeper flavor to the gravy. So the first secret of a restaurant is that they marinate the chicken. To make a marinade, we will need 4 things: lemon juice, vinegar, or curd. Second is salt, which is important because it helps the flavors penetrate deeper inside the meat. The third and fourth are fat and aromatics/flavorings, respectively. You need spices and ginger garlic paste. These give a characteristic taste to your curry. Now, all you need to do is, mix them well and marinate the chicken for at least 20 minutes.

Next step is to make the onion base and for that we are using 4 onions. She explains, "What we usually do at home is either we grind the onion or we slice it. In restaurants, the onion is finely chopped, which gives you the caramelized taste and helps in thickening of the gravy, and takes less time to cook.

Once the onions are ready, heat oil in a pan and add 2 bay leaves, 4 black cardamoms, 2 star anise, 1 cinnamon stick, 2 mace and a teaspoon of black pepper. Also add cloves and cardamom. Here, one needs patience to fry the spices without burning them. Now, add the onions and sauté them on a low flame. Then, I will add half a teaspoon of salt," she adds in the video and further explains, "Now I will add half a cup of water to this onion. So that the onion becomes softer. And before it turns brown, it starts dissolving in the gravy." Once the onion has started to turn golden, we will add Kashmiri red chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder and some cumin powder. Also, add some black pepper. And to prevent the spices from burning, we will add some water to this. "Now see, how the color of the spices comes out," she mentions.

"The restaurant color has come. Now we will add tomatoes to this. And with this, I will add some cashew paste to this," she adds, explaining that this step will give it richness, and second, it also thickens the gravy." Now all of this needs to be cooked until the masala releases oil. Next, add the marinated chicken and cook on a very high flame for 4 to 5 minutes. This will sear the chicken pieces, meaning the juices will get locked inside, and every bite of chicken will offer taste and aroma. Next, add water as per desired consistency and bring the gravy to a boil. Next, lower the flame, cover and cook it for 10 to 12 minutes and the oil will start coming on top.

Once the oil starts coming on top, you will also notice that the chicken has started leaving the bone as well. Now, it's time to add three more things to give it the perfect restaurant feel: a little butter, a little cream, and some crushed kasoori methi. This is the secret to that real flavor, she affirms. "Now after adding kasoori methi, we will not cook it for more than 30 seconds and your restaurant-style Chicken Curry is ready, enjoy," she concludes.

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