Scratch Cook Social was established by Raj Darji in Leamington Spa and offers private fine dining, catering, pop-up events and Spice Blending Experience workshops. 

Raj's passion for creating exciting and tasty British-Indian cuisine, draws on his experiences of living and working around the globe in is former corporate career, while always acknowledging a deep appreciation and respect for his Indian heritage.

This month Raj has shared his recipe for Chicken Masala which serves four!

For the chicken Marinade 

Ingredients

• 4 supreme of chicken, skin off 
• 8 cloves of garlic (approximately 30g) 
• 4 fresh green chillis 
• 30 g fresh ginger 
• 2 Tbsp of Scratch Cook Social's Handcrafted Tandoori Masala or if you don't have a jar of this, then you can substitute for 4 tsp Coriander-Cumin Powder, ½ Tsp Tumeric powder, ½ tsp red chili powder) 
• 2 Tsp Malden Salt 
• Juice of half a lemon 
• 2 Tbsp of light olive oil 

Mince the garlic, ginger and chilli and mix in all the other ingredients to create a paste. Coat the chicken pieces fully and rest in the fridge overnight if possible or if tight for time, then for at least 3 hours. 

For the Crushed Sweetcorn 

Ingredients

• 350g of sweetcorn, lightly blitzed in a food processor maintaining a rough texture 
• 70g of banana shallots, finely chopped (approx. 2 medium sized shallots) 
• 7g crushed garlic clove 
• 7g finely chopped ginger + 5g for finishing the dish 
• 2 Tbsp Coconut oil 
• 10 curry leaves 
• 1 Tsp mustard seeds 
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder 
• 2 tsp coriander-cumin powder 
• 1 Tsp Maldon salt 
• 400ml of coconut milk (1 tin) 
• Squeeze of lemon 
• Fresh Coriander, chopped 

Heat the oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Once seeds begin to pop, add the shallots and turn down to a low-medium heat to avoid burning. Slow cook the shallots until softened, then add the garlic and the 7 grams of ginger and cook for 2 minutes. Add the sweetcorn, turmeric, coriander-cumin and salt.

Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add the coconut milk and leave to simmer for 15 minutes with the lid on at low-medium heat. Check the salt and add a touch more if needed. Before serving, add the remaining 5 grams of ginger, squeeze of lemon and chopped coriander. 

Chicken

In the meantime, cook your chicken, you'll need the following ingredients: 

• 2-3 Tbsp light olive oil 
• 10 curry leaves 
• 3 sprigs of thyme 
• 50g unsalted butter 
• 2 fresh green chillies, sliced lengthways 
• 15g ginger, cut in to matchstick size pieces 

Pre-heat a fan oven to 180c. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the chicken and sear for 2-3 minutes each side. Add the butter, and when melted add the curry leaves, ginger, thyme and chillis.

Baste the chicken until a light brown colour is reached. Transfer the chicken on to a baking tray and pour over the cooking juices, placing the ginger, thyme and chillis on top of each of the chicken breasts. Cook in the oven for 10mins. 

Onions

While the chicken is in the oven, prepare your pickled onions; 

• 1 red onion, cut in half from top to bottom and finely sliced. 
• Bunch of fresh coriander roughly chopped including the stalks 
• 1 tsp Maldon salt 
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar 
• Squeeze of lemon juice 

Rub in the salt, vinegar and lemon juice into the sliced onions. Add the chopped coriander, rest for 10 minutes. 

Carve your chicken and place on bed of the sweetcorn and finish with the pickled onions.