School Night Indian Chicken Curry with Chickpeas

• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped ginger
• 1 large onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 tablespoon whole or ground cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon whole or ground coriander seeds
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves
• 1/4 -1/2 teaspoon cayenne (optional – depends upon your love of heat)
• 1 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into large pieces
• 1 16-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• ½ cup whole milk plain yogurt
• 1 16-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• Kosher salt to taste (Diamond brand, please)
• Chopped cilantro

Place the garlic, ginger and onion into a food processor and give it a few pulses until everything is very finely chopped (but not a paste). Set aside. Add the cumin and coriander seeds to a spice grinder or clean coffee grinder and grind to a powder. Or get your yaya’s out by pounding them with a mortar and pestle. Or just use pre-ground spices and call it a day.

Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger and onion mix and cook until golden brown, adding water if it starts to burn. This takes like 5 to 10 minutes, so be patient. Add ground cumin and coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, cloves and cayenne. Let cook another 15 seconds to bring out the flavor in the spices.

Add the chicken and saute for a couple minutes. Season with salt. Add the tomatoes, stir in the yogurt and add about 1 cup of water. Bring everything to a simmer, cover partially and allow to cook for about 45 minutes or until the chicken is fork-tender. Add the chickpeas, cook another five minutes. Season to taste with salt. Top with chopped cilantro. Serve with basmati rice. And maybe some Indian pickle.