The Simplest Chicken Coconut Curry

One of the things I loved about living in Manchester was the multicultural community. And dare I say, how every supermarket was well stocked with ready-made curries. So when the craving struck, we would dash to the store for a jar of tikka masala or korma to stir through our chicken.

Served with store-bought naan and homemade rice. Regardless of how many Hairy Bikers ‘ curry episodes I watched, I was always still intimidated at trying to make my own coconut curry. So what changed?

I hate to disappoint you, but nothing particularly special happened. It was just one of your usual days and I was unsure what to make but knew I had to use the coconut milk that would soon go bad. In the midst of my rebellious eye roll, my eyes caught on the ziplock bag popping with dried spices, and just like that, I thought “why not”? And so I did. So can you…

How to Cook the Chicken Coconut Curry

Making the coconut curry really is as simple as toasting the spices, sautéing the onions and tomatoes, and making a purèe for your paste.

Then add it to the cooked chicken and finish off with the coconut milk. It really is that simple and makes a super delicious curry!

1. I first toast the spices before adding in the oil and onions which I sauté until soft, then add in the canned tomatoes (oops, yeah true story) but you can absolutely use fresh tomatoes. Sprinkle in the powdered spices and let it all thicken. And that’s when I take it off the stove to purée.

2. Thereafter, I cook the chicken until all the water evaporates. Add a tablespoon of oil to brown the chicken a little.

3. Then add the purée to it and lastly the cinnamon stick, dried chili, and coconut milk. Let that simmer for a few more minutes to merge all the flavors and serve your homemade chicken coconut curry.

Can you use coconut cream instead of coconut milk? Well, first off let’s talk about coconut milk which can vary quite a bit in its consistency.

What I used was a product with no thickeners added. It had % coconut with the rest being water. If you do not have coconut milk you can use coconut cream but would need to lighten it with water.

Some people might like the rich texture but in my opinion and a few who have tried it with thick coconut cream came to the agreement that the coconut curry was a little much.

Please give the chicken coconut curry recipe a thumbs up below.

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Here’s a Little Something to Go With Your Curry

Easy Homemade Brown Butter Garlic Naan Bread

Print Recipe

Chicken coconut curry

(+15 rating, 3 votes)

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Lunch/Dinner – Indian

By Angela – Serves: 3

Prep Time: 5 minutes – Cooking Time: 15 minutes – Total Time: 20 minutes

A simple delicious chicken curry made with garam masala and other warming spices.

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon black mustard seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 4 cardamom pods
• 1 red onion (chopped)
• 210g tomatoes (chopped canned tomatoes or freshly chopped )
• 430g chicken thighs (bite-sized pieces)
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 180ml coconut milk
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 dried red chili

Instructions

1

Remove the cardamom seeds and add them to the cumin, mustard, coriander seeds to toast over low heat for a minute.

2

Pour in 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil and fry the spices for a few seconds before adding in the chopped onions. Let them cook until soft but not brown, so about 3 minutes on medium heat.

3

Next, add in the tomatoes and powder spices, and salt. Let them cook until the water has evaporated and the mixture starts to sound like it is frying in the oil that was initially added.

4

Transfer the mixture into a blender and purée until smooth.

5

In the same pan used for the spices, toss in the chicken to cook until it's water evaporates. Then add a tablespoon of oil to lightly brown the chicken.

6

Pour in the purée and mix through the chicken before adding in the coconut milk and cinnamon stick and dried chili.

7

Let that simmer on low heat for about 5 minutes stirring occasionally to avoid sticking.

8

Serve hot.