Heat oil in a large heavy pan.
Add onion and stir for a few mins on a high flame.
Add cinnamon, cardamons, cloves and fennel seeds and stir a little.
Lower the heat and cook for 10 mins.
Add ginger and garlic, stir and cook for another 10 mins on a low heat.
:- Stir continuously to make sure nothing browns or burns.
Add turmeric, coriander and chilly powder and fry gently for a minute.
Add 1 tbsp of yoghurt, stir round and turn the heat up so the yoghurt sizzles in the oil.
:- It won`t split if you`ve used full cream yoghurt.
When the yoghurt has lost a lot of it`s moisture, add another tbsp of it and stir fry as before.
Repeat, until all the yoghurt is incorporated.
:- The last tablespoons won`t sizzle but it doesn`t matter.
Add the tomato purTe and stir in.
:- The colour of the dish should now be similar to the background colour of the recipe list page - a rich orangy yellow with red flecks if you`ve turned the graphics off.
Stir in lots of hot water enough to make the mixture very fluid.
Bring to boil and simmer, stirring occasionally for 20 mins.
Add salt.
Heat a little oil in a large heavy frying pan.
Stir-fry the chicken pieces over a moderate heat, until they are sealed and have turned white.
Add the chicken to the sauce and simmer gently for another 20 - 30 mins, until the chicken is cooked.
Stir from time to time.
:- If the sauce gets too dry, add a little hot water.
10 mins from the end, add the creamed coconut pieces and stir to melt them.
:- Adjust the consistency of the sauce with some hot water as the creamed coconut will thicken the sauce.
:- At the end of the cooking you should have a fairly thick, creamy sauce with little patches of oil appearing at the top.
:- Remove the cinnamon and cardamoms, if you can find them! Don`t worry about the cloves.
Garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves.
:- Serve hot.