Chicken Curry with Saffron

I made chicken curry recently but got a little bored of using the same old recipe. At the Indian spice shop (to which I went for kajal) I found a small bottle of saffron and fresh chillies. 

 

1 small chicken, cut and skinned

1 medium potato, peeled

1 medium onion, diced

I bay leaf

1 piece of cinnamon

1 piece of star anise

1 clove

Salt to taste

1 teaspoon garlic, crushed

2 tablespoon masala

1 tablespoon oil

Pinch of thyme

Pinch of mixed herbs

3 chillies (depending on taste)

3 strands of saffron

 

Place the onions, bay leaf, cinnamon, clove, and star anise into a pot and turn on the heat. Once the onions have heated up add the oil until the onions are golden brown. Add the garlic and fry for a minute then add the masala.  Allow everything to fry and then add the chicken and potatoes.   Let it cook for a few minutes and then add the salt,  thyme, mixed herbs and chillies. By this time the curry would have dried out a bit. Place the saffron strands into some boiling water for 3 minutes and add to the curry. Allow to cook for 40 minutes. The curry is ready once the potatoes are soft. I served it with a pepper, cucumber and onion salad and fresh rotis.