Mouthwatering curry is one of the most satisfying meals, in my opinion, to enjoy at an authentic Indian restaurant. What if I told you that you can recreate that dish at home?? With a few extra essential spices, Indian-Inspired Chicken Curry is not something to be intimidated of and will leave you feeling impressed that you can make a meal SO flavorful!
Here we go!
This post is part of our Basic Cooking Skills series. Each week we will be doing a deep-dive into one basic cooking skill and a brand new recipe to accompany it to practice that newfound skill. Check back throughout the series for updates and new posts.
Essential Indian Spices
The diverse spices used in Indian cuisine create some of the most fragrant aromas you’ll ever smell when cooking. Seven crucial spices are used in Indian dishes and are worth having on standby in your pantry. You probably have a few handy already 🙂
From fresh ginger to cardamom pods, you would think these flavors are irreplaceable. But luckily that’s not the case! All of these spices can be easily substituted and you will barely be able to tell the difference. Check out this complete spice substitute chart by Spice It Upp that’s filled with all the information you need to make a few quick swaps.
- Black Peppercorns – black pepper whole, or ground
- Cardamom – in pods or ground
- Chile Peppers – any hot pepper variety, whole or ground
- Cinnamon – bark or ground
- Coriander – dried seeds or ground
- Cumin – roasted whole or ground
- Turmeric – diced fresh or ground
how to: prepare the vegetables for indian-Inspired chicken curry
Puree 3 large tomatoes in a blender or food processor.
Dice one large white onion to caramelize.
Finely dice garlic and ginger, and chop peppers if using.
Roughly chop cilantro for garnish.
how to: saute chicken breast
Dry the chicken on paper towels and sprinkle lightly with salt for the best crisp and flavor. For more tips on sauteing chicken breasts, check out Sauteing Meat.
Heat a pan over medium high heat. Once hot, add a splash of olive oil.
Lay the chicken breast in the pan and cook undisturbed until brown, about 5-6 minutes.
Flip and continue cooking undisturbed until cooked through, about 5-6 minutes.
Set aside to rest before slicing.
Chicken is fully cooked at an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
how to: make indian-Inspired chicken curry
First, caramelize onions with a few of the warm spices, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom.
Stir and allow to cook down until caramelized, about 30 minutes.
If using peppers, place on top of the onions about halfway through the process.
Once the onions are just about finished, add garlic and ginger and continue cooking about 5 minutes.
how to: incorporate indian spices
Combine all of the remaining spices into this beautiful spice blend!
It may look like too much, but as long as it is cooked in thoroughly you can avoid any sandy or grainy textures.
Toss in the spice blend with some olive oil and cook for at least 10 minutes until the spices really cook in. The spices MUST cook before adding tomatoes or you will be left with a curry that’s not very creamy.
Pour in the pureed tomato and simmer for 30 minutes or until reduced.
Add in the sliced chicken for about 5 minutes and serve.
Voila! Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve with basmati rice and naan.
Ingredients Needed
Materials Needed
Easy Indian-Inspired Chicken Curry
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil as needed
- 1 large white onion diced
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp cardamom
- 1 cup various peppers chopped, optional
- 4 cloves garlic finely diced
- 3 tbsp ginger finely diced
- 3 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 3 large tomatoes pureed
- 1/4 cup cilantro roughly chopped, to garnish
Instructions
Chicken Breast
- Heat olive oil in a pan over medium high heat. Lay the chicken breast flat and cook for 5 minutes undisturbed. Flip and continue cooking 5-6 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Remove from pan and rest before slicing.
Curry
- In a large pan over medium heat, stir in onions, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. Cook until the onions begin to caramelize, about 25-30 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, add peppers, if using. Add garlic and ginger for the last 5 minutes.
- Stir and slowly incorporate cumin, turmeric, coriander, and black pepper. Add a splash of olive oil and cook the spices for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.
- Pour in tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the liquid reduces. Stir in sliced chicken breast, garnish with cilantro, and remove from heat. Serve with basmati rice and garlic naan.
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What are some of your other favorite Indian dishes? Share in the comments below! Tikka Masala is another favorite of mine!
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I love Indian Chicken curry. My mom loves to make curry too. Thank you for sharing your recipe. You’re the best!
I absolutely love curry and never realized I could make it at home!
Such a detailed recipie. Good that you had gave a brief about Indian spices. –
Keep writing about such dishes
That’s so kind, thanks for your comment!
That looks so delicious. I love that you gave step by step guide. I should try this out
Thanks so much, I hope it turns out great for you!
This just looks delicious…there is something about a homemade curry, isn’t there? I bet it tastes amazing, with just the right amount of kick!
Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Aimsy xoxo
Aimsy’s Antics
It’s so amazing to be able to make something like this at home! Thanks for reading 🙂
This looks delicious and you’ve left well written instructions. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much 🙂
I’ve never had curry with bell peppers! I’ll have to try it to get in more veggies. Great recipe!
We usually only use bell peppers in creamier Thai curries but thought why not 🙂 Thanks for reading!
This looks absolutely delicious. I’m definitely going to be giving it a go!
Thanks so much! I hope it turns out great for you 🙂
This looks really yummy, I’m going to try it!
Thanks for sharing
Thanks, I really appreciate it!
This looks delicious! Chicken is something we eat several times a week. This is a great way to change up my chicken recipes.
Me too!! I eat chicken all the time and am always wanting more curry in my life 🙂
I have actually never made any kind of curry dish before. But this looks so amazing, I may need to branch out and try it! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
I was always a little worried it would be too complicated but it really isn’t! Thanks for reading 🙂
This looks amazing. Love that you have so many step by step photos. Thanks for sharing – Danielle
Thanks so much! I appreciate you checking it out!
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This looks lovely. I’ve always been a bit hit and miss with Indian dishes. I’d love to try more authentic ones though, like this!
All the spices make such a huge difference when compared to Thai curries and sweeter curries!
Your recipe always looks delicious! I’m adding this for my future references, as always lol Thank you! xxx
That’s so sweet, thank you so much!
Not going to lie, but I love Chicken Curry, I’m thinking about having one tonight, can’t decided yet though 😂 I have made curry before, probably not up to this standard. But I would certainly give it a go!
Chicken curry is one of my absolute faves!! It’s worth the hard work!
Ooooh, this looks so yummy! I love that it has veggies in it, and it is high in protein! Definitely saving it for later!
Thanks so much! I hope it turns out great if you try it!
This looks just so delicious!
Love how detailed your recipe is, thanks for sharing!
Can’t wait to try it!
INXSKY | Gold Stackable Rings
Thanks so much, I appreciate you commenting and rating!
I love Indian food, and I eat their cuisine every two weeks or so! If I ever decide to be adventurous, I am definitely going to give your recipe a try. Thanks for sharing!
I love it too, I eat as much Indian food as I can! Thanks for reading 🙂
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I do love a good curry, I’ll have to make some time to try this recipe out, as it sounds yummy
Indian food has such vibrant taste and curry is one of my favorites!