Chicken in Saffron-Tomato Cream Sauce

I tried another recipe out of the Indian food section of my slow cooker cook book. I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome of this. It does have some of my favorite ingredients in it (cumin, garlic, ginger, chiles, saffron, cilantro) so it just seemed natural to give it a try. I use a lot of fresh ginger in my cooking and I like it minced as opposed to grated. I have found that grating the ginger doesn’t give me that gingery flavor I am looking for. When I peel my ginger, I save the peels in a small container in the freezer. When the container is full I make myself a nice ginger tea by putting the ginger peels and hot water in my French press. To make the tea even yummier, add a little fresh thyme or mint and some honey.

What really steered me in the direction of this recipe was catching up on some back issues of Bon Appétit. I found a little “how to section” about breaking down a chicken. Breaking down your own chicken saves a few dollars at the store. Unfortunately I struggle with this process. I’ve watched so many cooking shows where the host shows you how to break down a chicken (Alton Brown does an excellent job) that you would think I’ve become a pro. No, this just is not something that I can do well. I get the concept, I can see where I should be cutting but for some reason my chickens don’t cooperate! I tried breaking down this chicken and I will say that I was 80% successful.

None of the flavors in this dish are over powering. It’s a great recipe to try if you are thinking of trying something “exotic.”  I served this over white rice to soak up some of the yummy juice that was left over.

1 cinnamon stick, broken into pieces

6 whole cloves

1 tablespoon coriander seed

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 yellow onions, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated or minced

1 small green Serrano chile, seeded and minced

2 teaspoons salt

1 (14 ½ oz) can crushed tomatoes

1 chicken cut into serving pieces and skinned

¼ teaspoon saffron threads

½ cup half and half

¼ chopped cilantro for garnish

Combine the cinnamon, cloves, coriander and cumin in a mortar or coffee grinder and grind to a fine powder. Heat a large sauté pan over medium high heat and add the oil. Add the onions and sauté, stirring frequently, for 10-15 minutes, until browned. Add the spice mixture, garlic, ginger, chile, and salt and stir for 3-4 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, or until some of the liquid has evaporated. Place the chicken in the slow cooker and pour the onion mixture over the top. Cover and cook on low for 3-8 hours, until the chicken is tender. At 3-4 hours, the chicken will still be firm and hold its shape. At 6-8 hours, the meat will be falling off the bone. In a small bowl combine the saffron and half and half. Let soak for 30 minutes. Stir the saffron cream into the chicken 30 minutes before the end of cooking. Season with salt to taste. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with cilantro.

The Gourmet Slow Cooker – Lynn Alley