Varadi Chicken

Varhadi region chicken curry — chicken prepared in the Varha style: a masala base of dry-roasted peanuts, sesame seeds, dried coconut, dried red chilli, coriander, and the distinctive inclusion of nagkesar (cobra saffron) and dagad phool (stone flower), ground into a paste with fried onion and ginger-garlic, cooked in oil until the fat separates, then the chicken added and pressure-cooked until the meat is completely tender and the thick, nutty, dark-coloured gravy clings thickly. Less fiery than Saoji but more complex in its spice layering; the sesame and peanut base gives the Varhadi curry its characteristic grainy, thick body. Made for Sunday meals and special occasions in the Amravati-Yavatmal belt; the addition of nagkesar distinguishes it from all other Maharashtra chicken curries.