Chicken tikka masala

Method

1. Heat the ghee or oil in a large pan over a medium-high heat. When small bubbles begin to appear, stir in the garlic and ginger paste; it will sizzle. Add the sugar, ground almonds and coconut flour (if using) followed by the tomato purée. This will cool the pan slightly.
2. Swirl this all together into one big happy tomato party then stir in the mixed powder, tandoori masala and paprika, followed by 250ml of the base curry sauce. When the sauce begins to bubble, add the rest of the base curry sauce and let it simmer nicely for a few minutes. As it simmers, the sauce will begin to brown on the side of the pan. Stir this in from time to time.
3. If you have some cooking stock from pre-cooked stewed chicken or spice stock, you can add it for extra flavour. Add the grilled chicken to the simmering sauce to heat through.
4. When the sauce has cooked down to your desired thickness, add the cream and food colouring, if using, and simmer for a further couple of minutes. If the sauce becomes too thick, you can add a little more base sauce, cooking stock or spice stock.
5. To finish, taste and season with salt. If you like your CTMs sweet, add a little more sugar. Squeeze in the lemon juice and sprinkle with the chopped coriander, dried fenugreek leaves and the garam masala. A swirl of cream on top adds a nice finishing touch.