It’s a good week for food and drink, and our bellies are certainly rumbling. Not only is it London Cocktail Week, but did you know National Curry Week 2013 is also in full swing?

So to get your mouths watering, here’s a traditional curry recipe that you can whip up at home, and some tasty facts about Britain’s favourite dish.

National Curry week takes place between 7 – 13 October and is now in its 16th year. It’s not just a brilliant excuse for us to have a lovely meal though, but a chance for restaurants all over the country to help to raise money for their chosen charities.

Did You Know…

• The average Briton spends around £34,000 on curry in their lifetime
• The term Korma doesn’t actually mean ‘mild and creamy’. It actually refers to slow cooking or braising and theoretically could mean mild or fiery hot.
• The first Indian restaurant in the UK was opened in London’s West End back in 1809.
• According to this year’s annual National Curry Week survey, us Briton’s consider chicken tikka masala as our number one curry dish.

Here’s a recipe to try for yourself.

Serves four (preparation 20 minutes, cooking time 55 minutes)

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons plain yoghurt
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons garam masala
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 green chilli peppers, minced
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 8 tablespoons tomato paste
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup of water
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 8 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large onion
• salt (to personal taste)
• 1 bunch fresh coriander
• 4 boneless chicken fillets cut into 1 inch strips

Method:

1. Combine garam masala, yoghurt, black pepper, salt, cayenne pepper and handful of diced coriander in a large bowl and add chicken strips, before leaving in the fridge to marinate for two hours.
2. Preheat oven to 230 degrees centigrade and grease baking tray.
3. Place marinated chicken strips on the baking tray, leaving an inch gap between each piece and bake in the oven until browned (around 10 minutes). Remove and set aside.
4. Heat vegetable oil in a large pan over medium heat. Cook and stir in cumin seeds until toasted then add chopped onion; stir and cook for four to five minutes until soft.
5. Mix in garlic, green chillies and ginger and cook for 15 to 20 minutes until onion is browned.
6. Cook and stir tomatoes, tomato paste and water into onion mixture until the tomatoes begin to break down.
7. Cook and stir in a teaspoon of garam masala and turmeric to the mixture. Add the cooked chicken and cream and mix to coat.
8. Cover and simmer for ten minutes before seasoning with fresh coriander.

If all this talk of curry has made you want to get into the kitchen and fire up the stove, our deliciously fun 12 month Friday night Curry Club subscription might be worth a look.

Giving this recipe a go? Take a photo and show us the finished dish on Instagram, Twitter or our Facebook page. 

Images: Caitlinator, I Believe I Can Fly, Seriouslygood1 and Edmond Wells via Flickr