Restaurant Style Chicken Karahi Recipe
Chicken Karahi is a staple in any Pakistani household. I recently made this restaurant-style chicken karahi that outperformed my previous recipes. I’m sharing this recipe with you, so you can make and enjoy this restaurant-style taste at home.
Ingredients for Restaurant-style Chicken Karahi
Chicken
I always use a whole chicken cut into 16-20 pieces for karahi, with bone-in for best results. I cut chicken myself, perks of living abroad. Boneless chicken can also be used but will not have the same flavors.
Onions or Tomatoes
Authentic chicken karahi doesn’t have any onions. I have not used any onions, but if you wish to make more masala, then 1 small onion can be used.
Ginger and garlic paste
In addition to ginger and garlic paste, sliced ginger is a staple for karahi; it gives the chicken a unique flavor and freshness.
I like to dry roast my cumin and coriander seeds because dry roasting helps with the aroma and flavors. Add cumin and coriander seeds in a pan without any oil. Start roasting until the color changes a little bit; take them off the stove and roughly crush them to make a coarse powder.
Storing Leftover Karahi
I like to keep Chicken karahi in a refrigerator in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. If you would like to store it in the freezer, then you can keep it for about a month. Simply thaw it in the refrigerator and heat it in the microwave once it is ready to eat.
How to serve Restaurant-Style Chicken Karahi
Chicken karahi tastes best with naan, paratha, roti, or white rice. Chicken karahi is a dish with a little bit of gravy; it will be perfect to serve with some naan or roti. Sprinkle some ginger, lime juice, and fresh cilantro for extra flavor. If you like this recipe, then try Beef Karahi, Black pepper chicken, charsi chicken karahi, white chicken karahi, and achari chicken.
Restaurant style chicken karahi
Ingredients
- 2.2 lbs (1 kg) Chicken cut into 16 pieces , 1KG
- ¾ cup (180 ml) oil
- 5 medium (500 g) tomatoes, cut into halves
Spices
- 1 tsp (1 tsp) Red chili
- 1 tsp salt , or to taste
- 1 tsp (1 tsp) red chili flakes
- 1 tsp (1 tsp) Cumin powder
- 1 tbsp (1 tbsp) Coriander powder
- 1.5 tsp (1 ½ tsp) Ginger paste
- 1.5 tsp (1 ½ tsp) Garlic paste
- 1 tbsp (1 tbsp) Dry roasted cumin coriander powder
- 1 tbsp (1 tbsp) Shan karahi masala, optional (use at the end)
Garnish
- 1 inch (1 inch ) Ginger for garnish, thinly sliced
- 1-2 (1-2) Green chilies , thinly sliced optional
Equipment
- 1 wok, karahi or pan
Instructions
- Heat oil in a wok or a pan, then add chicken. Make sure the oil is not too hot, or it will splatter
- Fry your chicken over high heat, stirring it often until it changes color and turns light brown. This step will take 7-8 minutes over medium heat.
- Now add ginger-garlic paste and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
- Add all the spices except for dry-roasted cumin-coriander powder and karahi masala (if using any). Mix everything and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Cut the tomatoes in half and layer them on top of the chicken. Cover and cook for 10 minutes over medium-low heat or until the tomatoes are soft. If your chicken is too dry, you can add a splash of water.
- After 10 minutes, take the lid off and peel the skin off the tomatoes with the help of tongs. It will easily come off.
- Break down the tomatoes with the help of a wooden spoon to make the gravy. Cook on medium-high heat for another 10 minutes, or until the gravy is thick and the oil separates.
- Now add dry roasted cumin-coriander powder and karahi masala (if using any) and mix.
- Garnish with sliced ginger and green chilies.
Video
Notes
- These measurements are for 1 kg of bone in chicken.
- I used fresh tomatoes to make the gravy. You can also use tomato puree.
- Serve this chicken karahi with naan or white rice.
- To make dry-roasted cumin-coriander powder. Add them to a pan and put the pan on the stove. Roast the seeds until they are fragrant and slightly change color, then cool them down and grind them.
- Optional, but if you want to enhance the flavors even more, add 1 tbsp of store-bought chicken karahi masala.
chicken karahi turned out so delicious. A perfect balance of spices and lots of gravy
How much coriander seeds and cumin seeds to make the dry roasted powder?
I always use two parts coriander seeds and one part cumin seeds. So let’s say 2tbsp coriander and 1 tbsp cumin seeds
This is such an easy and most flavorful recipe. This my go to karahi recipe now
Thank you for the feedback!
It turned out great! Thanks to your recipe, it was delicious, simple, and finger licking good!! My hubby loves karahi and he thought I had bought it from some restaurant ?
Thank you so much for taking the time to review. Love hearing about how you liked this recipe!
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How much black pepper?
This recipe doesn’t use any black pepper, but if you want to add it then you can use 1/2 tsp