CHICKEN CURRY WITH COCONUT MILK

By moninikole

Ingredients

• 250 gm of cleaned and cubed chicken pieces
• 1 cup of sliced onions
• 2 tbsp of oil (I use coconut oil)
• 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1 tsp of cumin powder
• 2 tsp of coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder
• 1 " piece of ginger
• 2 green chillies (adjust to taste)
• 2 flakes of garlic
• A few cubes of ripe tomato
• 1 tbsp of poppy seeds, soaked for 15 mins (see notes)
• 2 cups of thin coconut milk (see notes)
• 1 cup of thick coconut milk
• A small bunch of chopped coriander leaves, for garnish

Preparation

Step 1

1. Heat oil in a wide pan and add the sliced onions. Fry until golden brown (they need to brown a bit more than in the picture below).
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-2

2. Grind the green chillies, garlic, and ginger together coarsely.
easy chicken curry recipe with coconut milk

3. Add the spice powders - chilli, coriander, cumin, and turmeric - to the fried onions. Saute for 20 seconds.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-3

4. Now add the ground chilli paste and tomatoes to the above. Fry again for a minute, the mixture will turn fragrant.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-4

5. Add the cleaned chicken pieces to this,
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-5

along with the thin coconut milk + 1 more cup of water. Add salt. Bring this to boil.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-6

6. Meanwhile, grind the soaked poppy seeds in 2-3 tbsp water into a smooth paste. I use the same grinder as I used for chilli paste.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-7

Add poppy seed paste to the curry and when it comes to boil, lower heat and cook closed for 15-20 mins or until the chicken pieces are cooked. The gravy will also thicken a bit.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-8

7. On low heat, add the thick coconut milk and mix well.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-9

8. Do not boil for too long after the thick coconut milk is added. If you feel the gravy is too watery, boil the curry in an open pan before adding the thick coconut milk. Once it's heated through and just begins to boil, add the chopped coriander leaves, adjust salt, and remove from flame.
kerala chicken curry recipe with coconut milk-10
Pin on Pinterest

Serve hot!

Variations and Notes:
You can add more tomatoes if you want or omit it completely
If you want a 'whiter' curry, omit the chilli powder and increase amount of green chillies, to taste
I use poppy seeds as a gravy thickener. Other options are to use cashew nut paste (soaked cashew nuts ground with water) or more thick coconut milk or coconut cream
You can use curry leaves as garnish instead of coriander leaves but avoid using both
You can try this same recipe with chicken pieces with bone. It's hard for me to find that kind cleaned and prepared so I always opt for chicken breast. Adjust cooking time according to size of chicken pieces
You can make a vegetarian version of this curry by substituting chicken with soya chunks, potatoes, or a mixture of both. A mix of vegetables may also turn out well
Regarding thin and thick coconut milk - if using canned coconut milk, buy full cream variety (not the low fat or whatever) and for the 2 cups thin milk, dilute with 1:1 water. When you need to add the thick coconut milk, add it as is. Check this post if making coconut milk at home