Easy Indian Chicken Curry 🍛🥥🌶️ has pieces of juicy chicken, peppers, and onions that are simmered together in a creamy coconut milk broth that’s rich, fragrant, and so satisfying! This Indian-inspired, one-skillet curry recipe is simple, ready in 30 minutes, and uses easy-to-find ingredients!
Easy Indian Chicken Curry Recipe
- A complete one skillet meal with protein + vegetables. Tender chicken, onions, bell peppers, and shallots all cook in the same skillet to keep things easy, streamlined, and it saves on cleanup later.
- Big flavor with high protein in just 30 minutes. This is a practical meal for busy weeknights that tastes a lot more labor intensive and complex than it really is! I think the secret is the creamy coconut milk broth and the various spices that lend the depth of a much longer simmer. Since I’m always trying to pack in protein this dish delivers.
- Thai compared to Indian Curries. One of the most popular recipes on my site is my Thai Chicken Coconut Curry and I’ve since created nearly a dozen spin-offs from that recipe including a Green Chicken Coconut Curry and a Yellow Thai Chicken Coconut Curry. Thai curries typically incorporate a curry paste whereas this curry builds its distinctly Indian flavor with ground spices including curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, and cumin. The spices are very similar to the ones I use in my Indian Butter Chicken recipe which is a fan favorite!
- Flexible without losing its identity. You can change the bell pepper, use another quick cooking vegetable, choose fresh or ground ginger, and adjust the heat to suit your tastes. The core Indian spice blend stays the same, so the curry remains warmly spiced and full flavored.
- Inspired without following ‘all the rules’. I don’t claim to be making ‘fully authentic’ curries just like I don’t claim to be making ‘fully authentic’ Mexican food but my readers adore my Mexican recipes! Rather, I’m sharing recreations of restaurant-inspired curries I’ve eaten, taking some shortcuts and liberties along the way. Since most of my readers won’t have the opportunity to ever visit Thailand nor India, I do the best I can so folks can make things at home and get a taste of something fabulous in their own home.
Ingredients in Indian Chicken Curry with Coconut Milk
- Cooking oil: Coconut oil reinforces the coconut flavor, but avocado oil or olive oil also work without changing the overall character of the curry.
- Onion, pepper, and shallot: These soften into the sauce and give it savory depth, natural sweetness, and some texture. I use yellow onion although white onions are fine and red bell pepper is my preference but yellow or orange bell peppers are also fine. I’d steer clear if green peppers in this recipe.
- Tomato paste: Cooking it briefly with the aromatics and spices removes the raw edge and adds concentrated savory flavor, gentle acidity, and body to the sauce.
- Warming spices: Curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, cumin give the curry its layered Indian flavor, golden color, and earthy warmth. Curry paste is not an equal substitute because it changes both the flavor profile and the heat level.
- Other seasonings: Garlic gives the curry its savory backbone. Fresh ginger tastes brighter and more aromatic, while ground ginger brings a softer, warmer flavor. Either form of ginger is fine. Salt, pepper, and optional red pepper flakes if desired for more heat round everything out.
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts: Cut into bite-sized pieces so it cooks quickly and stays tender during the short simmer. Boneless chicken thighs may be subbed.
- Unsweetened canned coconut milk: Full fat coconut milk in a can produces the creamiest, thickest sauce. Lite coconut milk works too, although the curry will be thinner and less rich. Tip – Do not confuse coconut milk in a can with ‘cream of coconut’ which also comes in a can, but it’s super sweet and used in pina coladas!
- Lime juice, sweetener if desired, and fresh herbs: The acidity of the lime juice brightens the creamy sauce and really balances the dish. If the dish reads too bitter from the tomato paste and all the spices, a bit of brown sugar or honey may be in order. Fresh cilantro is a must for me and if you happen to have fresh basil on hand, it’s also great.
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How To Make Indian Coconut Chicken Curry
- To a large skillet, add the vegetables, oil, and saute for about 4 minutes over medium-high heat.
- Add the chicken, salt, pepper, and cook for about 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, curry powder, ginger, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, and cook for 1 minute while stirring.
- Add the coconut milk, broth or water if needed, and simmer for about 8-10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
- Add the lime juice, optional sweetener, cilantro, optional red pepper flakes for heat, additional salt and pepper, and serve!
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for step-by-step photos and process shots of the cooking process.
Indian Chicken Curry
🍛🥥🌶️ An easy curry with pieces of juicy chicken, peppers, and onions that are simmered together in a creamy coconut milk broth that's rich, fragrant, and so satisfying! This Indian-inspired, one-skillet curry recipe is simple, ready in 30 minutes, and uses easy-to-find ingredients!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil, or substitute with avocado oil or olive oil
- ½ cup yellow onion, diced small (or more to taste if desired)
- ½ cup red bell pepper, diced small (or more to taste if desired; yellow or orange bell peppers may be substituted)
- 1 shallot, finely minced
- 1 to 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into 1-inch pieces (boneless chicken thighs may be substituted)
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, plus more to taste or as desired
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- 2-3 garlic cloves, finely minced; or to taste
- 2-3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons curry powder
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger, (or use 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger)
- 1 tablespoon garam masala, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 13.5 ounces canned unsweetened coconut milk, (full fat recommended rather than lite; do not use refrigerated coconut milk nor coconut cream)
- ½ cup reduced sodium chicken broth, as needed (or water)
- ½ lime, juiced (or use about 2 tablespoons prepared lime juice)
- 1-3 teaspoons brown sugar, or as desired, optional and to taste (honey may be substituted)
- Red pepper flakes, as desired for heat, to taste (or cayenne pepper)
- ¼ cup finely minced fresh cilantro, or to taste for garnishing
Instructions
- To a large skillet, add the oil, onions, bell peppers, shallots, and saute over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes, or until the vegetables are beginning to soften; stir frequently.
- Add the chicken, evenly season with salt, pepper, and saute for about 4 -5 minutes; stir and flip frequently to ensure even cooking. It may not be fully done at this point, that's okay because it simmers in coconut milk for a bit.
- Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute; stir constantly.
- Ad the tomato paste, curry powder* (see next step), ginger, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, and stir to coat the chicken and vegetables evenly.
- Mixture will be thick and pasty, this is normal and expected; reduce the heat to medium if necessary. Stir continuously for 1 minute to bloom the spices. *Curry Powder Tips – Curry powder comes in many colors and spice levels. Some are very mild and some are very spicy. If you're unsure, I'd go with a mild to medium yellow curry powder. Since it's also a blend of various spices, they all have slightly different flavors.
- Reduce the heat to medium or medium-low, add the coconut milk slowly, and stir. If the liquid level is lower than you'd like or things are looking a bit dry, add chicken broth or water, a few tablespoons at a time, to bring up the volume of liquid. Tip – For extra fiber, protein, bulk, and to stretch this dish you can add a 14-ounce can of rinsed and drained chickpeas now.
- Simmer for about 5 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Tip – Chicken is fully cooked at 165F. It's not generally something to worry about when working with bite-sized pieces of chicken since they cook through very quickly.
- Turn the heat off, add the lime juice, stir, and taste. Flavor Tip – I never skip the lime juice because it adds a bright note to the curry I love.
- If desired, add a bit of brown sugar to balance the acidity. Flavor Tips – I always add a bit of brown sugar because between the various spices, the tomato paste, and the lime juice, the dish can read acidity and sharp. A bit of brown sugar really balances it and gives depth of flavor. If the curry tastes at all flat or boring, it needs more salt so don't be afraid to add it. I usually add another 1-2 teaspoons at this point so the flavor is balanced.If you like a bit of heat and your curry powder wasn't very spicy, red pepper flakes added to taste will boost the heat. And/or a tiny pinch of cayenne pepper. I actually use cayenne in most curries because in small amounts it doesn't really add "heat" but adds flavor although be careful 1/8th to 1/4 teaspoon is all you need.
- Add the cilantro either on top like a garnish or I like to stir it in to combine, make any final flavor tweaks, and serve with naan, coconut rice, jasmine rice, a dollop of thick plain yogurt or Greek yogurt, or as desired.
Notes
Storage: Curry will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat gently in the microwave as desired.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 357cal, Carbohydrates: 14g, Protein: 38g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.02g, Cholesterol: 109mg, Sodium: 937mg, Potassium: 909mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 867IU, Vitamin C: 33mg, Calcium: 49mg, Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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