Naga Bhuna Masala. A very hot curry by Misty Ricardo's Curry Kitchen

Naga Bhuna Masala Recipe

The flavour of naga chillies together with the masala spices and technique of frying hard to reduce to a thick condensed sauce gives this naga bhuna masala curry an extra special flavour. Experiment with the hottest chillies you can find. Make it with pre-cooked lamb (pictured) or any main ingredient you like, such as chicken, chicken tikka, vegetables, prawns, etc.

This recipe will feed 1-2 people. To stretch it out to go further, add a bit more meat and base gravy.

Books by Richard Sayce

Indian Restaurant Curry at Home Volume 1 by Richad Sayce
Indian Restaurant Curry at Home Volume 2 by Richad Sayce
Curry Compendium by Richard Sayce

INGREDIENTS

  • 3-4 TBSP (45-60ml) Oil, Ghee or a combination
  • 1 Tej Patta (Asian Bay Leaf) – omit or use ‘normal’ Bay Leaves instead if you like
  • 2 Green Cardamom Pod, split open
  • ½ tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 75g Onion, very finely chopped
  • 25g Green Pepper, very finely chopped
  • 1-2 Garlic Cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1½-2 tsp Ginger/Garlic Paste
  • 1¼ tsp Mix Powder
  • 1 tsp Extra Hot Chilli Powder or Deggi Mirch
  • 1 tsp Kashmiri Chilli Powder
  • 1 tsp Tandoori Masala
  • 1 tsp Kasuri Methi
  • ¼-½ tsp Salt, to taste
  • 4 TBSP Tomato Paste
  • A pinch of Red Food Colouring (optional)
  • 1 TBSP each of fresh Coriander Stalks and Leaves, finely chopped
  • 1-2 fresh Naga Chillies, very finely chopped or 1 TBSP Naga Pickle
  • 175-200g Your Main Ingredient e.g. Pre-Cooked Chicken, Lamb, Chicken Tikka, Vegetables, etc.
  • 250ml+ Base Gravy
  • 2-3 Tomato segments
  • 2-3 tsp Natural Yoghurt
  • 1½ tsp Mango Chutney

METHOD

  1. Add the oil to a frying pan on medium high heat.
  2. Throw in the Asian bay leaf, green cardamom and cumin seeds. Stir and
    fry for 30-45 seconds to infuse the oil.
  3. Add the onion and green pepper. Cook for 1-2 minutes until soft and browned
    slightly, adding the garlic slices in after the first minute.
  4. Next add the ginger/garlic paste, stirring until just starting to brown and the sizzling sound reduces. Don’t let it stick to the pan.
  5. Add the mix powder, chilli powders, tandoori masala, salt, and kasuri methi.
  6. Fry for 20-30 seconds, stirring very frequently. Add a little base gravy (e.g.
    30ml) if the mixture dries out and sticks to the pan to avoid burning the
    spices and give them enough time to cook properly.
  7. Add the tomato paste, coriander stalks, fresh naga chilli or a good naga pickle, and turn up the heat to high.
  8. If using pre-cooked chicken or lamb add it now and mix well, making sure the meat pieces are coated in the sauce.
  9. Add 75ml of base gravy. Mix and let cook for 30-45 seconds with no further
    stirring.
  10. Then add a second 75ml of base gravy, stir into the sauce, and leave on high
    heat with no further stirring until the sauce is reduced a little, and small dry craters form around the edges.
  11. Stir in a final 75ml of base gravy and add the tomato segments.
  12. Leave to cook on high heat for 4-5 minutes. Stir and scrape once or twice to mix the caramelised sauce back in, but do this only to prevent the sauce from sticking too much and burning. It’s important to let the sauce adhere to the bottom and sides of the pan, which produces a great flavour. Add some extra base gravy near the end of cooking if it appears to be thickening up too much, although the bhuna should have a thick final consistency.
  13. Shortly before the end of cooking (e.g. 1 minute), turn down the heat and add the yoghurt, mango chutney and the fresh coriander leaves. Stir together, then taste and season with extra yoghurt, salt, or mango chutney if desired.
  14. Fish out the Asian bay leaf and the green cardamom pods (if you can spot them). You can also spoon off any excess oil from the surface of the curry if you wish.
  15. Serve, garnished with a slice of tomato or cucumber and a sprinkling of extra coriander.

Naga Bhuna Masala. A very hot curry by Misty Ricardo's Curry Kitchen

Watch the Video

NOTES

  • Much more insights and useful cooking tips for cooking BIR style curries are in my Curry Compendium and Indian Restaurant Curry at Home Volume 1 cookbooks.
  • All spoon measurements are level (1 tsp = 5ml, 1 TBSP = 15ml).
  • As with all my restaurant style curry recipes, the base gravy should be added hot when cooking with it. Make sure it’s about the consistency of semi-skimmed milk by diluting with water beforehand (if needed).
  • The amounts of base gravy stated in the recipe are for the diluted version. Please feel free to add extra base to the curry if you like more sauce.
  • I hope you enjoy this naga bhuna masala recipe. Please visit the Misty Ricardo’s Curry Kitchen YouTube Channel for lots of Indian recipe videos.
Naga Chilli

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