Mom’s Chicken Curry and Buttery Rice Pilaf
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 large or 2 medium Honeycrisp apples, peeled and chopped
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 1 1/2 inches ginger root, peeled and grated
- 4 large cloves garlic, chopped or sliced
- 1 small red chili pepper, seeded and chopped
- Salt and pepper
- 3 to 4 tablespoons curry powder*
- 3 rounded tablespoons flour
- 5 to 6 cups homemade chicken stock, warmed
- 1 poached chicken, meat removed
- 1/2 cup mild mango chutney, Patak’s preferred brand
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup thin spaghetti, broken into 1- to 2-inch pieces
- 1 1/4 cup American Basmati rice
- Salt and pepper
- 2 1/2 to 3 cups chicken stock
- Thinly sliced scallions whites and greens
- Smoked almonds, chopped, or sliced almonds with skins, toasted
- Chopped cilantro
- Mango chutney
*To make your own curry powder, toast 1 tablespoon cumin seed, 2 teaspoons each mustard and coriander seed, and 1 small piece (about 1 inch) cinnamon stick, then grind together with 1 tablespoon turmeric, 1/8 teaspoon cardamom, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne or other ground hot red pepper in a spice mill.
Melt butter in large deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the apples, onions, ginger, garlic, chili pepper and season with salt and pepper. Cook to tender 7-8 minutes, do not brown. Add curry powder and stir a minute then add flour and stir a minute more, whisk in warm stock and thicken a bit. Stir in the chutney then adjust salt and pepper. Add in chicken and simmer at low bubble while rice cooks.
For the rice pilaf: Heat a saucepan with a lid over medium to medium-high heat. Add butter to pan and melt until it foams, add spaghetti and brown the broken bits; add rice and season with salt and pepper. Add 2 cups stock and bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer 15-18 minutes, adding a bit extra stock if necessary and shaking pot occasionally.
Serve the curry and rice with toppings of choice.