This Indian chicken curry recipe is easy to make and simply delicious! All you need to make it at home is some chicken, coconut milk, a handful of other ingredients, and of course…spices!
You all know that I’ve got a thing for curry flavor. I love it in this curry chicken salad with grapes recipe as well as in gobi masala (cauliflower curry). I’ve even shared my special homemade curry powder recipe with you all!
Speaking of curry, I just love Asian cuisine. Recipes from Japan, China, Thailand, Mongolia, and India make my heart (and stomach) sing. The key is in the wonderful spices that come out of this region of the world. They take simple ingredients — like chicken — and make them stand out. This brings me to today’s recipe…Indian chicken curry, which is perfect for any week night dinner!
Indian chicken curry is called murgh kari. It originated in the northern part of India, where this traditional stew is still served. It’s made with chicken and an assortment of spices: garlic, cumin, ginger, turmeric, and cayenne pepper, to name a few. I decided to recreate this curry chicken recipe on my own (using coconut milk instead of the traditional yogurt) and the results were fantastic!
INGREDIENT NOTES AND SUBSTITUTIONS
- Chicken - Boneless chicken thighs are the best for this chicken curry recipe. The darker meat comes out especially tender, and the flavor perfectly complements the sauce.
- Ghee - Ghee is a special type of Indian clarified butter. If you can’t find it, feel free to replace it with butter.
- Red Onion - This sweeter, milder variety adds enough flavor without competing for attention.
- Garlic & Ginger Paste - Garlic makes everything better, and traditional curry chicken recipes always feature a bit of ginger.
- Veggies - Opt for Roma Tomatoes if you can, along with Green Peas (fresh or frozen) and White Potatoes to make this curry chicken recipe even heartier.
- Coconut Milk - This magical ingredient will give you a creamy coconut chicken curry every time. Don’t worry — the dish won’t taste tropical at all.
- Spices - No Indian-inspired dish is complete without added spices! I love using my homemade versions of Curry Powder and Garam Masala, but storebought works just as well. And don’t forget the Fenugreek Leaves!
saute red onion, garlic and ginger add tomatoes and curry powder full fat coconut milk add chicken and potatoes
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN CURRY
- Start The Sauce. The base of my coconut chicken curry is a yummy sauce. To make it, melt the ghee or butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add your onion and cook until almost translucent. Then, add the garlic and ginger paste. Cook for about 1 minute before adding the tomatoes and curry powder. Let everything cook for another minute.
- Add The Coconut Milk. In the same skillet, add the coconut milk and cook for 3 minutes. You can leave the sauce as is, or you can use an immersion blender to puree it until it’s smooth. In either case, taste the sauce and add a bit of salt as needed.
- Cook The Chicken and Veggies. Now, add the chicken and potatoes to the skillet. Stir, lower the heat, and then cover so that it can simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the green peas, fenugreek leaves, and garam masala. Let your curry chicken cook for another couple of minutes so that the sauce thickens and reduces.
- Season and Serve. Add more seasonings to achieve the taste that you’re after. You can serve this dish on its own, or over steamed jeera rice. You should also have plenty of naan on hand to sop up all of that delicious curry sauce!
Why Is My Curry Watery?
One of the reasons why I like to add potatoes to my coconut chicken curry is that they act as a thickening agent! No need to add flour or cornstarch here.
If you still find yourself with watery results, there are two things you can do to fix it. You can either break down the cooked potatoes with a spoon to help thicken your dish, or you can add a few tablespoons of instant potatoes. It may not be the traditional way to thicken curry but it works like a charm!
What Is The Secret To A Good Curry?
The secret is all in the spices, folks! This is just one of the reasons why I like using my homemade curry powder and garam masala in my recipes. Quality, fresh spices really do make the difference!
You can get even more flavor out of your seasonings if you buy whole spices instead of ground varieties. Toast them whole before grinding them yourself for the best results.
Is Garam Masala The Same As Curry Powder?
While these two spice mixes use almost the same exact ingredients, they are not created equally! Both include turmeric, cumin, coriander, and cardamom. Curry powder also features fenugreek and cayenne pepper, while garam masala uses star anise and cinnamon as well.
The big difference comes in the quantity of each spice used in each mix. Garam masala is typically considered stronger than curry powder and typically used to "finish off" a recipe. I love using both for comfort food recipes like this one!
Subscribe to my Newsletter, follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube for all my latest recipes and videos.
Related Posts
Indian Chicken Curry (Murgh Kari)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless chicken thighs
- 2 tablespoon ghee or butter
- 1 ½ cups red onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon ginger paste
- 2 Roma tomatoes chopped
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 15 ounces coconut milk
- 2 cups white potato peeled and cubed
- ½ cup frozen green peas
- ½ teaspoon fenugreek leaves
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
Instructions
- Melt ghee in large skillet over medium heat and cook onion until almost translucent. Stir through garlic and ginger paste, cook 1 minute. Add tomatoes and curry powder, stir and continue cooking for another minute.
- Add coconut milk and cook for 3 minutes. Either keep sauce thick and chunky or use an immersion blender to puree until smooth. Season to taste with salt.
- Add chicken and potatoes, stir through and cover. Lower heat to simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Remove lid, stir through green peas, fenugreek leaves and garam masala. Cook another few minutes, stirring to thicken sauce and reduce (See Note 1).
- Season to taste and serve over optional steamed rice and plenty of naan or bread of choice to sop of delicious curry sauce.
Notes
- If curry sauce is too thin there are 2 things that can assist in thickening it. I stir the cooked potatoes that slightly start to break down and thicken the curry sauce or add 1 or 2 tablespoons of instant potatoes and stir through. It's certainly not a traditional technique, but one that works every time.
*The information shown below is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice.
Nutrition
You are amazing thank you so much for this recipe ad all your efforts in making this article available to us. I tried making it in the similar way you have mentioned and it really out to be so yummy that I could not believe it was made by me.
So happy to read this and that you enjoyed it Supriya! Thanks for coming back to let me know. 🙂