Kadai chicken — chicken cooked in a kadai (the Indian equivalent of a wok — a round-bottomed, heavy steel pan) over high heat with freshly coarsely ground spices (the kadai masala is made fresh for each preparation) and peppers — is distinguished from other chicken curries by two elements: the fresh-ground spice paste applied at a specific moment of cooking (not at the beginning), and the half-cooked, still-textured bell peppers and tomato that provide textural contrast against the tender chicken.
- **The kadai masala:** Whole coriander seeds and dried red chilli dry-roasted and coarsely ground immediately before use. This freshness produces a completely different aromatic than pre-ground spice. [VERIFY] Bharadwaj's kadai masala recipe. - **The chicken:** Bone-in, cut into medium pieces — seared over high heat in the kadai until golden before the other ingredients are added. - **The fresh ground masala timing:** Added after the onion-ginger-garlic base is cooked and after the chicken has been returned to the pan — the fresh spice is added to the hot, flavoured base at this late stage to preserve its volatile aromatic compounds. - **The peppers:** Added in the final 5 minutes — they must retain their structure and slight raw-crisp bite. Fully cooked peppers lose the textural contrast that defines kadai preparations.
Indian Cookery Course