Ridiculously Easy Coconut Curry Chicken (SO Quick + Tasty!)

Indian Coconut Curry Chicken in a bowl topped with cilantro.

5 from 16 votes

Ridiculously Easy Coconut Curry Chicken (SO Quick + Tasty!)

My Indian husband asks for 3 servings of this Coconut Curry Chicken, a delicious blend of tender chicken, creamy coconut milk, and simple Indian spices. It's the quickest, easy chicken curry recipe - perfect for weekdays.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Total Time50

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Indian, Thai

Keyword: Coconut Curry Chicken, Indian Curry, Thai Curry

Servings:

Author: Jennifer Pallian BSc, RD

Ingredients

4 tbsp oil
2 ½ cups chopped onion
1 red bell pepper sliced
1 jalapeno chopped
3 ¼ tsp kosher salt divided use
2 tbsp minced garlic
3 tbsp curry powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp cayenne pepper
1 14 oz can coconut milk
1 ¾ lb boneless skinless chicken breast cut in 1" cubes
¼ cup plain yogurt or cream or more coconut milk

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Heat oil in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat.
Add onion, bell pepper, jalapeno, and 1 tsp salt. Cook until very soft, about 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
While that cooks, sprinkle chicken evenly with 1 ½ tsp salt and let stand.
Add garlic, curry powder, turmeric and cayenne to softened onion mixture; cook 3 minutes more, stirring often, until mixture turns a shade darker and smells fragrant.
Add coconut milk along with 3/4 tsp more salt.
Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer the sauce uncovered for 2 minutes.
At this point you can puree the sauce using an immersion blender (or carefully in a regular blender), or just leave it as is.
Add chicken to sauce and simmer, uncovered, for 10-12 minutes until chicken is cooked through (it should be 165ºF internal temperature).
Stir in yogurt and serve.

Video

Notes

Pre-salting the chicken ensures it is properly seasoned and never bland, even with the quick cooking time of this curry.

It’s important to simmer the chicken uncovered because, even though the sauce looks thick, it will release a lot of moisture. If you simmer the curry covered, it will make a more watery sauce with less concentrated flavor.

If you don’t like bell peppers, replace with ½ cup finely chopped green onions. Trust me, it adds a similar pop of vibrant flavor and just works! Don’t swap in tomato.

Nutrition