Chef's Special with Dildar Rojob, The Standard, Jericho, Oxford

I was sixteen and looking for work over the summer holidays, when I landed the position of a prep chef at The Trout Inn, Wolvercote, Oxford.

I found myself on the starter section within a couple of weeks and before you know it you’re doing a thousand covers a day. This was my first kitchen job and I gained experience of cooking on a larger scale, but the real inspiration to become a chef came from my mother. Watching her cooking was fascinating and growing up we were spoilt with amazing food of such variety.

My brother Kawsar and I run The Standard, we’ve been here since September 2011 when we took over from our father who originally started the business in 1972.

Ingredients:

* 6-7 tbsp oil
* 7-8 cloves of garlic
* 2” piece of ginger
* 3 medium/large onions (sliced)
* 1 tbsp tomato paste
* 1200-1500g chicken (whole chicken cut into 8 pieces works best but can use breasts or legs if preferred)
* 700-900g Pumpkin (alternatively use a small butternut or seasonal squash)
* 2 tsp turmeric powder
* 2 tsp cumin powder
* 2 tsp ground coriander (roast seeds in pan and crush or blend)
* 1 tsp chilli powder (substitute for fresh chillies if preferred)
* 2-3 pieces cinnamon
* 4-5 cardamon pods

Add the oil to a heavy saucepan (large enough for a whole chicken) and keep on a low/medium heat.

Add garlic and ginger paste and fry a little, add cardamom and cinnamon and stir.

Add onions and 1½ tsp salt, stir then cover and leave on medium heat for five minutes.

Check onions, they should start breaking down, if sticking, add a little water and leave to simmer.

Once onions have started to break down add the remaining dry spices (turmeric, coriander, cumin chilli). Simmer until oil separates from spices/onions. If sticking, add a little water.

Add tomato paste and a little more water, leave to simmer until oil separates.

Now add the chicken pieces and stir, covering all the pieces with the sauce in the pan.

Cover and leave on medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

The chicken should be about half cooked, at which point add the pumpkin/squash (large chunks are best) and stir in with chicken. Cover and leave for another five minutes.

The chicken is now almost cooked, add 200ml water and cook for further five minutes. Check the chicken is cooked and pumpkin/squash al dente (remember pumpkin will continue cooking in the sauce).

Check the seasoning and finish with chopped coriander. Best served with basmati rice.