Easy Chicken Curry with 7 ingredients

One of the go-to comfort food for most non-veg eating Indians is chicken curry and rice !!

There are many different types of chicken curry in India.

The taste, ingredients used to make a chicken curry and sometimes the cooking method may also differ region to region.

This post shows in a stepwise way how you can make a  basic Indian curry sauce without the need to follow a recipe and improvising with the ingredients you have on hand.

From the North of India to the South, stretching from East to Western India there are thousands of chicken curry variants.

This easy to make Indian chicken curry recipe is a mix of Northern and Western Indian flavours.

It is made with a homemade multipurpose restaurant-style curry spice blend and the standard aromates used in most Indian dishes.

Ingredients To Make Homemade Chicken Curry

It is a common misconception that Indian cooking involves a pantry load of ingredients and hours of cooking.

This recipe breaks that myth, as this easy chicken curry recipe can be made at home with just 7 ingredients and in 30 minutes excluding the 10 minutes preparation time.

So in total, you will need 40 minutes of your time to cook one of the best chicken curry recipes.

As for the ingredients for making chicken curry at home. Here is the picture  and a list of them (missing oil from the pic) :

FRESH INGREDIENTS

⇒ Chicken 1 kg

⇒ Onions 3, chopped

⇒ Tomato canned or fresh – 3/4 can or 3 fresh

⇒ Ginger – 1.5 inch, grated

⇒ Garlic – 6-8 grated

SPICES

⇒ Multipurpose curry powder 4 tsp

PANTRY ITEMS

⇒ Sunflower oil 3 tbsp

How to Make Easy Chicken Curry Indian Style

Here is a stepwise guide to make this dish at home.

STEP 1 

Finely chop onions, ginger and garlic in a blender.

STEP 2

In hot oil, saute the onions, ginger and garlic until golden brown in colour.

STEP 3

Add the chicken to the pan with the sauteed onions, ginger and garlic.

STEP 4 

Add 4 teaspoon of the pre-blended restaurant style curry powder and saute for 5 minutes.

STEP 5 

Next add the tinned tomatoes and continue to cook for another 5 minutes until it gets mushy.

STEP 6 

Add 1 cup of water to make the gravy of the chicken cover and cook for 10 minutes.

STEP 7

Once cooked you will see tiny droplets of oil floating up and the chicken is well done.

STEP 8 

Serve this homemade spicy Indian chicken curry with plain boiled rice or any Indian bread.

Cooking Tips & FAQs

1. To reduce preparation time,  blend or finely chop onions, ginger and garlic together in a hand blender like the one below or in any chopper you have at home.

2. Fine chopping the onions makes the sauce bulky and thick.

3. Use fresh tomatoes instead of tinned tomatoes if you wish.

4. You can use any curry blend of your choice for making this dish with just 7 ingredients.

5.  This chicken curry recipe is an easy make-ahead dish. You can make the dish a day before and let all the spices get absorbed into the chicken.

6. If you wish, you can marinate the chicken with a teaspoon of the curry powder with 4 tbsp of yoghurt. This makes the chicken tender soft and ensures that the spices are well absorbed.

7. The amount of water coming out of the chicken is variable. Add water accordingly. If you add too much water it will dilute the flavours of the spices.

8. If you like your chicken to be spicy add additional chilli powder along with the spice mix or fresh green chillies after you add water.

Can I  Make Indian Chicken Curry for Toddlers and Children

Absolutely, you can make this chicken curry dish for your little ones.

Few things to remember though is to know the type of pre-blended curry powder mix you are using.

The multipurpose restaurant-style curry spice blend that I make at home is catered for my little ones. That is I add less chilli powder to the blend.

If the blend is hot, that is it has chilli powder added to it then it may be advisable to limit the spice blend and use just a teaspoon or two.

You can supplement the spice blend with a tsp each of cumin powder and coriander powder.

Or you can add a teaspoon of Garam Masala powder in the end to the curry for a flavour boost.

Another option to make chicken curry child-friendly is to add cream, coconut milk or almond milk for a creamy mild sauce and reduce the amount of water.

Making Indian Chicken Curry In Slow Cooker

This recipe is so easy to make in the slow cooker.

There are two ways to do that.

One is the easier short cut way but may dilute the flavour of the spices a bit and the other needs 10 minutes of your time.

The short way is to add all the ingredients, that is onion, ginger, garlic, tomatoes, salt, 3 tsp of curry powder, 1/2 cup water and chicken to the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours.

Add a teaspoon of curry powder after 3 and 1/2 hours into slow-cooking to bring out the flavours.

The little longer version is to seal the chicken on high flame first.

Next saute the onions, ginger and garlic for 5-8 minutes in a pan and then add it to the chicken along with the spice blend, tomatoes, 1/2 cup water and salt and slow cook for 4 hours, adding a tsp of the spice blend 3/4 way into cooking.

What To Serve Chicken Curry With

The ideal combination for most Indian curries is plain boiled rice.

You can also serve and eat this chicken curry with any Indian bread such as roti, parantha or naan.

Indians especially in North and down South serve most Indian dishes with yoghurt or raita.

This is because yoghurt helps to cut through the spiciness of the dish.

So if you are someone who likes the flavours but not the spicy hit or serving it to someone similar then I would surely recommend serving it with a bowl of yoghurt.

Cooking Tips To Make The Best Chicken Curry At Home

More Chicken Curry Recipes

Here are other chicken curry recipes for you to try.

Chicken Rezala – a yoghurt based chicken dish made with aromatic spices. The recipe belongs to the kitchen of the Indian royals.

Spicy and Sweet Chicken Curry with Cranberries – a blend of sweet fruit, tangy yoghurt and ground spices gives this spicy cranberry chicken a unique taste.