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1
Marinate the Chicken
15 Mins
Room temperature
Rub the chicken pieces with half the roasted curry powder, half the chilli powder, the turmeric and half the salt. Leave to marinate while you prepare the rest.
Bone-in thighs need the full 15 minutes; the spices cling better to dry skin-free meat.
Done when: Chicken is evenly coated and deeply coloured.
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2
Temper the Whole Spices
3 Mins
Medium heat, ~160°C / 320°F
Heat the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, fenugreek and mustard seeds and fry for 30 seconds until the mustard seeds pop. Add the curry leaves, lemongrass and green chilli and fry for another 30 seconds.
Keep the leaves moving — curry leaves burn quickly and turn bitter.
Done when: Spices are fragrant and the mustard seeds have popped.
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3
Build the Curry Base
8 Mins
Medium heat, ~160°C / 320°F
Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook for 4 minutes until soft and golden at the edges. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute, then add the remaining roasted curry powder and chilli powder and fry for 1 minute. Add the tomato and cook for 2 minutes until it softens into the spices.
Frying the ground spices in oil before any liquid goes in is what wakes up the roasted flavour.
Done when: The base is a thick, dark, oily paste that smells deeply roasted.
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4
Simmer with Goraka
25 Mins
Gentle simmer, ~95°C / 203°F
Add the marinated chicken, the soaked goraka with its water, and 200ml water. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover with the lid ajar and cook for 25 minutes, turning the chicken once. The chicken must reach 74°C (165°F) at the thickest part.
Never let it boil hard — a bare simmer keeps the chicken tender and the sauce from splitting.
Done when: Chicken is tender and the sauce has darkened; a thermometer reads at least 74°C (165°F).
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5
Add the Coconut Milk
10 Mins
Low simmer, ~90°C / 194°F
Pour in the coconut milk, stir gently and simmer for 10 minutes more without a lid, until the sauce thickens enough to coat a spoon. Stir in the reserved 60ml coconut milk and the lime juice, then taste and add the remaining salt if needed.
Adding coconut milk late and keeping the heat low stops it curdling; the final spoonful keeps the sauce glossy.
Done when: Sauce is thick, glossy and dark brown; chicken falls easily from the bone.
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6
Rest & Serve
5 Mins
Off the heat
Take the pot off the heat, cover and rest for 5 minutes so the sauce settles and the flavours come together. Fish out the lemongrass stalk and cinnamon stick, then serve hot with rice.
Resting matters — a curry served straight off the boil tastes sharp; five minutes rounds it out.
Done when: Sauce is glossy and settled; the curry smells of roasted spice, coconut and lime.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the curry in a wide bowl with the sauce spooned over the chicken, and set out steamed red rice, pol sambol and a wedge of lime. Eat it the Sri Lankan way: mix a little curry into the rice with each spoonful.
Sri Lanka
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France
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