Coconut Chicken Curry
A properly spiced coconut curry, built on cumin, coriander, cardamom, and turmeric rather than a shortcut curry powder. Marinating the chicken first is optional, but it genuinely helps.
Blooming the spices for the full three minutes before the coconut milk goes in is what stops this tasting raw or dusty. It’s a small step that makes a real difference.
Cashews and fresh chilli on top add crunch and a bit of heat against the rich, coconutty sauce, served over basmati rice cooked with lime leaves.
Coconut Chicken Curry
CHICKEN · CURRY · MEDIUM
Real Spice Depth, No Curry Powder Needed
Building the spice base from individual ground spices instead of a pre-mixed powder gives you a lot more control over the final flavour, and it genuinely tastes fresher.
Searing the chicken before it goes into the curry adds a layer of flavour that just simmering it from raw wouldn't give you, even over a 25-minute simmer.
Toasted desiccated coconut, if you've got a spare minute, deepens the coconut flavour even further and makes the whole dish taste more complete.
Coconut Chicken Curry
Ingredients
Sri Lankan Coconut Chicken Curry
- 1 Brown (Yellow) Onion Sliced
- 4 Garlic Cloves Grated
- 25 g Ginger Peeled & Grated
- 30 g Coconut Oil
- 750 g Chicken Thigh Boneless & Skinless
- 12 g Ground Cumin
- 8 g Ground Coriander
- 2 g Ground Cloves
- 8 g Smoked Paprika
- 6 g Ground Turmeric
- 4 Green Cardamom Pods
- 180 ml Chicken Stock
- 12 g Desiccated Coconut Optional
- 500 ml Coconut Milk
- Salt & Pepper To Taste
Garnish
- Roasted Cashew Nuts Chopped
- 1 - Spring Onion (Scallion) Sliced
- 1 - Long Red or Birdseye Chilli Sliced
- Coriander (Cilantro)
Rice
- 200 g Basmati Rice Washed
- 400 ml Cold Water
- 2 Lime Leaves Optional
- Salt To Taste
Method
Sri Lankan Coconut Chicken Curry
- In a large bowl, add the chicken thigh, sliced onion, minced garlic and ginger, and 1 tsp of the coconut oil. Mix to combine. Cover and marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes, up to 24 hours.
- Heat the remaining 2 Tbsp of coconut oil in a large high-rimmed pan or pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thigh, leaving the remaining ingredients in the marinating bowl, and sear for 3 minutes on both sides until golden. Remove and place on a plate to rest. Cook in batches if needed.
- In the same pan or pot, add the remaining marinating ingredients along with the ground cumin, ground coriander, ground cloves, smoked paprika, turmeric, and cardamom pods. Sauté for 3 minutes, mixing regularly.
- Add the coconut milk, chicken stock, and desiccated coconut (optional). Mix to combine and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add the seared chicken along with any resting juices and mix to combine. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is well past the safe internal temperature of 74°C (165°F).
- After 25 minutes, check the curry for seasoning, adjust if necessary, and remove from the heat. Serve with the rice and garnish with cashew nuts, spring onion, coriander, and chilli. Dig in.
Rice
- Place a large saucepan over high heat. Add the rice, cold water, lime leaves, and sea salt flakes, and mix to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 14 minutes, undisturbed. Turn off the heat and leave the lid on for a further 4 minutes. Remove the lid, discard the lime leaves, fluff the rice with a fork, and serve with the curry.
I’ve made this twice now, beautiful stuff. An interesting variant of a familiar dish, especially if you’ve grown up with North Indian curries.
Happy to hear you’ve been enjoying it. Thank you!
I didn’t think such a simple, quick recipe could be so tasty! What a perfect blend of flavours, that sauce is to die for. Thanks Jack!
Hey, Tyson! The flavours really work well with one another in this one and as you said, it’s really simple but extremely tasty. Glad you enjoyed it. Thank you.
I made this for some friends a few days ago and they loved it! It was so good, the chicken was so juicy, the curry was nice and creamy. Will make it again.
Happy to hear! Glad you all enjoyed it. 🙏
How does your curry turn from yellow to brown? Mine just stays yellow the whole time and looks nothing like your photo
It’s from flavour development. It also depends on the materials of your cooking equipment and how well it distributes heat. These factors can determine the result of a recipe compared to how its shown.
I’ve made this recipe several times now – usually when I make a curry it’s a 24 hour job (including overnight marination). This is a delicious weeknight curry that comes together with minimal effort, and yields a brilliant gravy that has a great depth of flavour. Love it! Thanks for the recipe 🙌 a really fantastic channel, glad to see it’s finally blowing up! It’s helped me improve my knife skills and transform my culinary skills. So far I’ve made the honey glazed carrots 🥕, salmon with crunchy Asian slaw, duck fat spuds, this curry and several other of your dishes. You & Bruno Albouze have the best YouTube channels for dinners and desserts. Very keen to see what’s in store for the new year!
Have just seen this recipe on YouTube.
Jack, it sounds sooo yummy!
Hope to try it very soon.
Margaret NZ
Thank you, Margaret. This recipe is delicious.
Should we use green or black cardamom in this recipe?
Green for this recipe.
Chef this dish was just outstanding- the absolute best I’ve ever had!! Thank you for sharing with us.
What is the name of the company of the gray/taupe pottery bowl you used to transfer the chicken thighs to? I have been searching for a year! Thank you.
Hey LJ, I appreciate hearing that. Thank you. The bowl is from Ecology. It’s the Ottawa stoneware range. I hope you can find it.
Thanks so much for this recipe Jack, it’s a firm family favourite now! Even my elderly father who lives with us loves it and he claims that he “doesn’t like curry”. He asked for this as his birthday meal this year! I always make whatever my family wants for their birthdays. If we’re lucky enough to have leftovers of this they get devoured FAST by my husband and father. Another bonus is that this is so easy to make and is sure to impress anyone who eats it. It’s definitely good enough for dinner parties too. I’d love to see you create some special themed dinners such as a Sri Lankan dinner party, etc. Just a thought of ever you’re looking for some content ideas. I make so many of your recipes, they’re always on rotation in this home. Your recipes NEVER fail, I know if something looks good in a video it’s going to taste amazing too. I almost always make the rice the way you suggest for each recipe using it because it’s just an added touch to make a meal feel a little more special and cooked with love for the family I love. Besides, it’s really nice to have touches of extra flavour in rice that I wouldn’t otherwise have made on my own. Thanks you so much for all the time and effort you put into creating such outstanding content.
Thank you so much for the kind words! I’m really glad to hear it’s become a family favourite — especially winning over a “non-curry” fan! That means a lot. I love your idea for themed dinners too, I’ll definitely keep that in mind for future videos. Appreciate all your support and for cooking along with me!
Always great to make this.
Lots of flavour, creamy and delicious.
Fantastic recipe mate.
Hi, Jeffrey. Great to hear that. Glad you’ve been enjoying it.
Hi, I cook a lot of Indian and Pakistani food. I love your recipe, I did however add a tablespoon of tomato paste and a tablespoon of curry paste just to give it that extra kick, but I love the easy way of preparing it. Thank you.
Thank you very much! Glad you loved the recipe. If you loved it, I kindly ask to give the recipe 5 stars as it helps the algorithm suggest my recipes. Thank you