- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp chilli powder
- 100ml/3½fl oz single cream
- 4 boned, skinned chicken breasts (weighing approximately 560g/1 lb 4oz in total)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 5cm/2in piece cinnamon stick
- 6 cardamom pods, cracked open
- 6 cloves
- 140g/5oz onions, cut into fine half-rings
- 2.5cm/1in piece fresh root ginger, peeled and cut into fine slices, then into fine strips
- 1-3 hot green chillies, cut at a diagonal into fine strips
- ½ tsp black or yellow mustard seeds
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- cooked basmati rice, to serve
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
- Put the tomato purée in a bowl and mix with one tablespoon of water.
- Add all the remaining sauce ingredients, in the listed order, mixing as you go.
- Spread out the chicken breasts and season them generously on both sides with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Put three tablespoons of the oil in a non-stick frying pan and place over a high heat.
- When hot, add the cinnamon, cracked cardamom pods and cloves.
- After ten seconds, add the chicken breasts in a single layer and brown them lightly on both sides.
- Remove with a slotted spoon and place in a single layer in an ovenproof dish.
- Add the onions, ginger, and green chillies to the same frying pan and fry them in the residual oil until they are golden-brown in colour.
- Remove with a slotted spoon and spread evenly over the chicken breasts.
- Add the remaining one tablespoon of oil to the frying pan. When hot, add the mustard seeds. As soon as they pop – this will be just a few seconds – add the garlic and stir.
- As soon as the garlic starts to brown, pour in the sauce.
- As soon as the sauce heats up and starts bubbling, pour it over and around the chicken without displacing the onion mixture.
- Place the ovenproof dish, uncovered, in the oven and bake for 25 minutes.
- Serve immediately with basmati rice.