Curry lovers! This chicken jalfrezi recipe is especially for you! Furthermore, it only contains 279 calories per portion! Hence making it a great option for those trying to lose weight or for those who are simply looking to eat healthier. The average chicken jalfrezi from an Indian takeaway contains 524 calories (kcal), however, when dining out most people tend to consume a lot more. Pilau rice contains 203 calories, 1 nan bread is 303 kcal, 1 popadom 60 kcal and an onion bhaji is 364 kcal. That’s a total of 1454 calories and that’s without alcohol, which is nearly ⅔ ‘s of your daily calorie intake based on 2000 calories.

Opting for a fakeway instead of a weekly takeaway is a good way of avoiding those added calories. The chicken jalfrezi recipe below is packed full of flavour, brightly coloured vegetables and is truly delicious! Additionally, you won’t be left undoing your top button under the table and feeling uncomfortable after this meal. If you are veggie or have guests who don’t eat meat, you can opt to use chickpeas instead of the chicken and adjust the recipe accordingly. I hope you enjoy this meal as much as I do, it is best served with basmati rice.

Time: 30 Minutes                   Servings: 4                   Calories: 279

Ingredients

• 6 long green Chillies,
• 4 boneless, skinless Chicken Breats
• 1 can of Chickpeas (if vegetarian)
• 2 tbsp Sunflower Oil
• 2 Garlic Cloves, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 ripe Tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tbsp Ground Cumin
• 1 tbsp Garam Masala
• 1 tsp Ground Turmeric
• 1 tbsp Caster Sugar
• 1 tsp Sea Salt
• 200ml cold Water
• 2 tbsp low-fat Yoghurt
• 1 medium Onion, cut into wedges
• 1 green Pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
• 2 tomatoes, quartered
• 2 tsp corn flour
• 1 tbsp water

Method

1. Firstly, finely chop 4 of the chillies – deseed a couple or all of them first, if you do not like your food too spicy. Split the other 2  chillies from their stalk to tip on one side, without opening or removing the seeds. Cut each chicken breast into 7 or 8 bite-sized chunks.
2. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large, fairly deep, non-stick frying pan (or wok) over high heat. Add the garlic, chopped chillies, chopped tomatoes, cumin, garam masala, turmeric, sugar and salt, then stir-fry for 3-4 minutes until the vegetables have softened.  
3. Next, add the chicken pieces (or chickpeas if veggie) and cook for 3 minutes, stirring regularly. Pour over the 200ml of water, stir in the yoghurt and reduce the heat slightly, to allow the sauce to simmer. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally until the chicken is tender and cooked through and the sauce has reduced by about a third. The yoghurt may separate, to begin with, but it will disappear into the sauce.
4. While the chicken/chickpeas are cooking, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a clean pan and stir-fry the onion and pepper over high heat for 3-4 minutes until lightly browned. Add the quartered tomatoes and fry for 2-3 minutes more, stirring until the vegetables are just tender.
   Meanwhile, mix the cornflour with the tablespoon of water to form a smooth paste.
5. When the chicken is cooked, stir in the cornflour mixture and simmer for a few seconds until the sauce thickens, stirring constantly. Lastly, remove from the heat, add the hot stir-fried vegetables and toss together lightly. Serve immediately. And a reminder… don’t eat the whole chillies!

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