Indian Chicken Curry is creamy and savory, made with chicken breast in a seasoned yogurt and tomato sauce, ready in 30 minutes!
We love making flavorful curry dishes, and this week we’re meal prepping for Curry Chicken Salad, Thai Pineapple Chicken Curry, and Mango Curry Chicken Salad!
INDIAN CHICKEN CURRY
Indian Chicken Curry is savory, creamy, and a little bit spicy, made with lean chicken breast, fat free yogurt, diced tomatoes, and seasoning. I like to serve this Indian curry dish over basmati rice, with extra yogurt and cilantro. You can also serve with naan instead of rice, or lighten up the dish with spaghetti squash or cauliflower rice.
This is a great recipe to make ahead, because the flavors only come together more as it sits in the refrigerator. We always order this dish at our favorite Indian restaurant, but today I’m excited to share a lightened up version of this curry that you can make any day of the week!
HOW TO THICKEN CHICKEN CURRY
You can thicken curry a few different ways. Try adding 3-4 tablespoons of tomato puree, stirring until combined. You can also try adding more yogurt, or just cooking the curry for longer until some of the water cooks off and the sauce thickens.
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN CURRY IN THE SLOW COOKER
- Spray a skillet with vegetable oil and cook chicken breast until browned on both sides. Place chicken in slow cooker. Place onions, garlic, and ginger on top of chicken.
- In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, tomatoes, and seasoning. Pour over chicken.
- Cook on high for 4 hours, or on low for 8 hours. Top with fresh cilantro and serve.
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN CURRY IN THE INSTANT POT
- Turn on the saute function and grease the bottom of the bowl with cooking spray.
- Add ginger, garlic, onions, and chicken. Brown on both sides.
- While the chicken is cooking, whisk together tomatoes, yogurt, and seasoning. When chicken is done, pour sauce over chicken.
- Seal the lid and pressure valve. Set on manual high setting for 8 minutes, then allow to naturally release.
- Top with cilantro before serving.
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HOW LONG WILL CHICKEN CURRY KEEP?
Homemade Indian chicken curry will keep for 3-4 days in the refrigerator, sealed in an airtight container.
CAN YOU FREEZE CHICKEN CURRY?
You can freeze Indian chicken curry for 2-3 months when sealed tightly. This does have a yogurt base, so it won’t be as good as if it were just made after it has been reheated.
If you want to meal prep and freeze this Indian chicken curry recipe, I recommend cooking the recipe with the tomatoes and seasoning, but leaving the yogurt out. Let the curry cool completely and freeze. When you want to eat, reheat the curry in a large saucepan and add the yogurt at that time.
MORE CHICKEN RECIPES
- Ginger Chicken Stir Fry
- Chicken and Green Bean Stir Fry
- Korean BBQ Chicken Drumsticks
- Middle Eastern Chicken Kebabs (Shish Tawook)
- Thai Pineapple Chicken Curry
- Skinny Kung Pao Chicken
TIPS FOR MAKING CHICKEN CURRY
- Release some of the aromatic properties of the curry spices by sautéing them with the onion. You can also add a teaspoon of garam masala for more flavor (garam masala is also found in dishes like chicken tikka masala).
- If your curry tastes bitter, add a small amount of sugar to the recipe to balance the flavor.
- Add more veggies to this curry dish, like peas, green beans, or chopped spinach.
- If you’re not a fan of yogurt, you can make this chicken curry recipe with a can of full-fat coconut milk (make sure it’s canned coconut milk, not the carton). The light coconut milk will not be as creamy. You can also use light sour cream.
- You can make this curry dish with leftover cooked chicken, like rotisserie, or use turkey or beef. If you’re using cooked meat, you only need to cook the curry dish until it’s heated through.
- You can make this as spicy as you’d like by adding more or less cayenne pepper. If it’s your first time making this dish or Indian cuisine in general, I recommend using less, because there are a lot of other seasonings in this recipe.
Ingredients
- vegetable oil spray
- 3 chicken breasts boneless skinless, cut into 1" chunks
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons ginger minced
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 15 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup fat free plain yogurt
Instructions
- Coat a large skillet with vegetable oil spray and cook the chicken breasts on medium heat and cook until cooked through, about 5-7 minutes then remove from the pan.
- Add the vegetable oil to the pan along with the onions and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally until softened then add in the garlic and ginger and cook an additional 1-2 minutes.
- Add the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander and cayenne and stir well for 30 seconds before adding in the tomatoes, yogurt, stirring well and cooking on low for 10 minutes.
- Add the chicken back in, stir well to combine and garnish with cilantro.
Notes
Nutrition
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I made this for dinner tonight, it was delicious. My only change was I only did 1/8 tsp of cayenne which was perfect for us. I served it with brown rice and riced cauliflower.
Thanks for coming back to let me know, Maureen. So glad you enjoyed it.
Isn’t 3 chicken breast a lot of chicken
Also do u know how much a serving is
The recipe does not explain when to add the kosher salt.
Just finished having this for dinner… it’s so good and easy to make! I made it over spaghetti squash and added peas, definitely will make this again
Super easy and really tasty!
I omitted the coriander (ran out) and the cilantro…not worth the trip to the store.
Keeper!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I added frozen peas and green beans
recipe was easy and delicious
Glad you enjoyed it, sounds like a delicious addition.
are the onions diced or cut diagonally?
Diced, sorry about that.
Should I deseed the tomatoes and get rid of excess water ?
No need! 🙂
Can you substitute fat free Greek yogurt?
The sauce won’t be quite as creamy but I would as long as you aren’t concerned with the graininess.
Do I use 15oz can tomato or chop up 15oz of Roma tomato ?
Nice! Spicy but not terribly hot. A little bitter because I may have burnt the spices. I saved it with a bit salt and sugar. Great colour. Could use some extra veggies. I added fresh cherry tomatoes.
Would it taste ok if I leave out turmeric, cumin and coriander and just put in two tbsp of curry? I don’t have them and want to cook with what I have today.
My daughter moved back home because of pandemic. She never took the time to learn much cooking, so we are making time now. She made this recipe and it tasted great. Proud mom moment. I suggested to add salt to meat cooking or spice step, and to dice onion into bite worthy chunks. Thank you for creating this flavorful dish. I will be making it too.
Thank you Janie! I’m so glad it was a fun and delicious experience for you both!
Absolutely delicious! My husband and I both loved it.
So glad you enjoyed it!
So yummy! Completely satisfied my craving for an Indian curry. I have some food intolerances so substituted onion for leek and garlic for garlic infused oil. I also used chicken drums which I browned then cooked in the sauce and shredded at the end. I had some natural coconut yogurt at hand so used that. Your spice combination is a huge winner!! Thank you.
So glad you enjoyed it!
This is my first time trying and making chicken curry. It was super good.
This recipe is so easy, quick and most of all delicious. Thanks so much!
Thanks Gail!
Just finished eating this for dinner. It was great! Made it more spicy by adding peppers but you do not need to. Highly recommend! Super easy to cook
I loved it! Super easy and can’t wait to make it again!