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Chicken Rezala

Chicken Rezala is a famous Bengali recipe originated from Mughal Empire.Unlike other Bengali delicacies which has traveled to far away land, rezala remained confined to West Bengal.

It is a perfectly balanced dish which is neither too sweet, sour or spicy. Additionally, it has a creamy texture which goes perfectly with both rice and Indian bread.
Recipe

Ingredients 

-10-12 Cashew nuts

-2 tbsp Poppy seeds

-1 kg Chicken (Curry Cut)

-1 tsp Ginger paste

-1 tsp Garlic paste

-1 cup Yogurt

-2 tbsp Oil

-3 tbsp Ghee

-3-4 Clove

-6-8 Black pepper corns

-2 inch Cinnamon

-2 Green cardamom

-2 Black cardamom

-4-5 Dry red chilies

-1 tsp White pepper powder

-Salt to taste

-1 tsp Red chilli powder (Not added traditionally)

-1 tsp Garam masala powder

-½ cup Onion paste

-1 tbsp Ghee

-2-3 drops Kewra essence

-1 pinch Saffron (Soaked in 1 tbsp 

How to cook

Soak cashew nuts and poppy seeds in warm water for 10 minutes and then make a smooth paste in a blender. Next marinate the chicken with a mixture of ginger garlic paste, salt and yogurt and keep it aside for an hour. Now, heat ghee and oil in a pan. When the ghee turns hot, add cloves, black peppercorns, cinnamon, green cardamom, black cardamom, and dry red chilies. Let it fry for 20 seconds. Now add the marinated chicken pieces to it and fry on high flame for 4-5 minutes.

Now, add cashew nut and poppy seeds paste, white pepper powder, salt, red chilli powder and garam masala powder in the pan.
Add the onion paste and 1 cup water. Cover the pan and cook on low heat for 40-50 minutes. When the chicken is almost cooked add ghee and kewra essence and mix well.

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