Charred pumpkin and chicken makhani with beetroot salad

Preheat the oven to 190°C fan

Mix together all the marinated chicken ingredients apart from the chicken

Season with salt and pepper then trim any excess fat from the chicken thighs and cut them into large chunks. Mix them through the marinade and leave to sit in the fridge for 1–2 hours

Meanwhile, prepare the charred pumpkin. Mix all the charred pumpkin ingredients together and roast in the oven for around 30–40 minutes, or until the pumpkin is tender and lightly charred

While the pumpkin is roasting, prepare the beetroot and red onion laccha salad. Mix together the onions, beetroot, green chillies, fresh coriander and spices, then add in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Mix again then cover and set aside in the fridge until ready to serve

For the makhani, sauté the onion in half the peanut oil over a medium heat for 10–15 minutes, or until softened and lightly browned

Transfer the onions, tomatoes and cashews to a blender and blitz until smooth, adding some of the soaking liquid if needed to help it blend

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat, then add the remaining peanut oil. Fry the marinated chicken pieces over a medium heat for a couple of minutes on each side. It isn’t necessary to cook the chicken all the way through at this point so remove them from the pot after a couple of minutes and set aside on a plate

Place the large frying pan back over medium heat and add in a dash of vegetable oil. Once hot, add in the whole spices

Once they begin to sizzle, add in the garlic, ginger and green chillies. Turn the heat down and fry on a low heat for around 2 minutes, avoiding colouring the garlic. Turn off the heat before adding in the ground spices. Cook out for a minute or so before adding in the tomato cashew purée

Mix well then add in the caster sugar and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer covering partially with a lid, and cook until the tomato base has reduced and thickened, about 15–20 minutes. Add a splash of water if it begins to reduce too quickly

Whilst the base is cooking, prepare the turmeric rice. Heat the ghee over medium in a saucepan, then add in the ginger and garlic. Fry the aromatics for around a minute, making sure not to brown the garlic

Toast the garam masala, pepper and turmeric in the ghee, then add in the drained rice and turn the heat up to medium high. Drain the soaked rice well, then fry off the rice for around 2 minutes while stirring but not crushing the grains

Add in the stock and salt. Bring to a boil then cover the pot with a tea towel and a lid. Cook on a medium heat for around 10 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave the rice to steam for another 10 minutes

Remove the whole spices from the curry base and discard them

Add the fried off chicken pieces to the curry base, then add in a dash of water to loosen if needed, depending on how reduced your base is

Cover and simmer for around 5–7 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through 

Stir through the roasted pumpkin and cook until warmed through, then mix in the dried fenugreek leaves, and season with salt and pepper as needed. Turn off the heat and stir through the cream, butter and coriander

Once the rice has cooked, fluff it all up with a fork. Serve the rice along with the pumpkin and chicken makhani, and beetroot laccha salad. Garnish with a drizzle of yoghurt and the fresh coriander leaves