MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06
 
      Title: Shahi Murgh (Royal Chicken)
 Categories: Chicken, Indian
      Yield: 6 Servings
 
  3 1/2 lb Chicken (approximate)
      1 cl Garlic
      1    Green chilli
      1 lg Onion
      4 oz Ghee or cooking oil
      1    Fresh ginger piece (2")
     10    Cardamoms
     12    Cloves
      1 ts Salt
      2 tb Natural yogurt
      1 pn Saffron
      4 oz Fresh coconut; cut into thin
           -slices
      1 tb Cilantro; chopped
 
  Shahi Murgh literally translated means "Chicken for the King." It
  owes its origin to Persia and as such contains some very typical
  Persian ingredients such as almonds. The essential nature of Shahi
  Murgh is to cook the chicken in aromatics, such as cloves and
  cardamoms. The result tends to be a rather scented dish.
  
  Preparation time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  Cooking time: 1 hour
  
  Skin and joint the chicken, cutting it into 8 joints. Peel and crush
  the garlic and rub over the chicken. Place to one side for an hour or
  so. Then, peel and chop the chilli and onion together into fairly
  fine pieces. Heat the ghee or cooking oil in a heavy saucepan and fry
  the chilli and onion mixture very gently for a minute or so. Peel and
  thinly slice the ginger and add to the saucepan, together with the
  cardamoms and cloves. Cook for another 2 minutes to release the
  scented oils of the cloves and cardamoms.
  
  Now add the chicken and cook for a futher 10 minutes, sealing each
  side of the chicken pieces. Add the salt, yogurt, and saffron, cover
  the saucepan, and simmer for a further 45 minutes until the chicken
  is cooked.
  
  The sauce for this should be fairly thick, if it appears too runny,
  then boil rapidly to drive off some of the water. Fifteen minutes
  before the dish is cooked, add the sliced almonds and coconut.
  Sprinkle with chopped cilantro before serving.
  
  Recipe by Indian Cooking by Khalid Aziz, 1983
 
MMMMM