Spicy Jalfrezi

One of the most popular restaurant curries today, Jalfrezi was invented during the days of the Raj as a recipe for using up leftovers by frying them with onions and chilli. It is a curry which is considered ‘dry’, without lots of gravy but instead having a thick sauce which clings beautifully to your chosen main ingredient. The flavour of Jalfrezi is hot, sour and sweet and it is cooked with lots of onions, peppers, tomatoes and fresh chilli, together with garlic and ginger. The sweet-sour notes come from the use of mango powder (amchur) in the blend, which also features cumin, fenugreek, black pepper and mustard to round off the fiery flavour a Jalfrezi should always have. It is a curry which is usually cooked more quickly than many others, in fact it is almost a stir-fry, traditionally cooked in a ‘karai’ which is basically a small, heavy wok – the dish in which it is usually served in a restaurant. Jalfrezi can be made with any meat, seafood or vegetable you choose, but our favourite things to make it with are fat, juicy king prawns or paneer (Indian cheese). This authentic blend is a must for anyone who likes their curries really hot and spicy!