10 July 2011

Spicy Chicken Coconut Curry


My first post on a savoury dish, shocking I know! I was half tempted to keep this purely a baking blog but I love cooking non-sweet treats nearrrllyyy just as much, nearly.. :) so thought i'd share a meal recipe too, incase you fancy a change!

We adore a good curry in my little household, especially my ma, and as such have christened Saturday nights 'Curry night'! Every Saturday I rustle up a curry, mostly trying out new recipes (I have found some stars over the past year or so, 3 of which I am especially dying to tell you about but I will have to wait until I make them again as a post without photos is just silly)

I first stumbled over this recipe on the lovely blog Eats Well With Others. I have made another recipe from this site (the pecan slices, I will have to make them again soon) which turned out to be glorious, and it is originally a highly rated Tyler Florence recipe, so I was pretty sure it would turn out well if all went to plan

Apart from halving it, I followed the recipe almost exactly. The changes I made was to add in half a red bell pepper and at the end I put in about 1/2 tsp dried chili flakes as there was not as much of a kick as I like, next time I would use 2 or even 3 dried red chiles I think. I tend to prefer a thicker sauce than this curry, but when served up with lots'a lovely rice, all that deliciously fragrant gravy is soaked up, so really...no complaints! After cooling the sauce thickens up a fair bit anyway and the reheated leftovers are just as, if not more, divine.

The verdict: scrum-diddly-umptious, definitely needed the extra kick from the chili flakes to please our tastes but it was really flavoursome for such a simple recipe. If you prep all the ingredients before hand it really is just a matter of bunging them in in a certain order and letting it do its thang. It tastes just like a restaurant curry (insert chuffed face) and although there have been 'Curry Night' recipes I have preferred, there have not been many. For how tasty and easy it is it's definitely worth a shot if you fancy a happy belly and impressed nearest n dearest :)
And this is allll it takes to make this yumminess, crazy huh! (minus the cilantro..im clever)
Below is the halved recipe, it served 2 greedy adults with 1 decent sized leftover portion

Spicy Chicken Coconut Curry
Adapted from Tyler Florence as found via Eats Well With Others
Serves 3

1 1/2 Tbsp (3/4oz) butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 inch ginger, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp Garam Masala*
1/2 cinnamon stick (or 1 whole)
1-2 dried red chiles
salt and pepper
1 (15oz) can coconut milk (I used light)
1 cup (240ml) chicken stock
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 tomatoes, deseeded and chopped
3/4 lb skinless chicken breast (2 large), cut into bite sized pieces
1/4 cup cilantro (aka coriander), plus more for serving
juice of 1/2 lemon 

Heat the butter in a med/large pan over medium-low heat, add the onions, ginger and garlic. Cook slowly until the onions are very soft, approximately 15 minutes

Add the tomato paste, garam masala, cinnamon stick and chiles - stir well. Season with salt and pepper, add the coconut milk and stock, bring to a simmer

Cook until the sauce has thickened, about 20 minutes, adding the red pepper half way through

Add the tomatoes, chicken, cilantro and half the lemon juice. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through, approx 10/15 minutes (I let mine simmer for about 20/25mins)

Taste and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper and remaining lemon juice

Garnish with cilantro and serve with lots'a rice (brown rice all the way!)

Notes
* Garam Masala is a curry powder that can be found in most supermarkets, its a wonderful mix that I use often but if you cannot find it you can make your own. If you follow the link to Tyler Florence's recipe he provides instructions to make your own Garam Masala

     Click, print, and get cooking!

25 comments:

  1. oh my, this sounds really good. You've outdone yourself!

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  2. I love curry! This sounds amazing! I am bookmarking this recipe...I can't wait to give it a try! :)

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  3. gotta love a good curry! i especially love ones that are coconut-based or spicy, so it looks like you've got me doubly hooked here. will have to try it out!

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  4. i am a fan of curry, there's something so homey about tucking into a bowl of it heaped over steamed rice. tho i have been known to add in a few ladles of stock to thin out & make into a soup...

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  5. Looks fabulous - I am a huge fan of all kinds of curries and this looks amazing.

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  6. @Maureen Thank you so much! That means a lot to me as i was worried i shouldnt venture into savouries on here, but I lovelovelove cooking so..thank you for putting my mind at rest a little! :)

    @sweetpeaskitchen.com Thank you indeed Christina, coming from someone whos blog I admire so much that is really special (the coconut cake you recently posted...wow..)

    @amy @ fearless homemaker Amy I would definitely give this a go then! I do warn you that the coconut flavour does not come through incredibly strongly, maybe full fat milk would work better, but it still is lovely :)

    @Angry Asian Making this into a soup would definitely work, a great idea i think! Will have to try that next time i make it

    @Delishhh Thank you for commenting, coming from a wonderful blogger such as yourself that is a great compliment!

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  7. New to your blog, via Picky Palate. Love your curry photo--my favorite part of blogs is enlarging the photos and looking at the details close-up. Oh, yum!

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  8. Wow... this is good
    and to have this curry in winter... ooh!!!heaven can wait ;)

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  9. Looks Yummy! I love curry in any form and with coconut, I m sure it would be delicious.Can I come over for dinner? :)

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  10. I love curries too! This one looks great... I really like coconut milk! :-)))) Congrats on your first savoury post! <3

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  11. I love curry :) yours looks so amazing and seems to be perfect on a bowl of hot rice :)

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  12. Ahhhh I love curry. Especially coconut curry. This looks delicious! I like it better when ordered from an Indian restaurant because it usually tastes better and I don't have to make it myself... but that's getting a little draining on the old wallet. Time to try it at home!

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  13. @Kathleen Richardson Thank you Kathleen!! I completely agree, i love looking at photos up close and im half considering changing the blog as the template means i cant have bigger photos which is saddening! I hope more people enlarge them like you do :)

    @Tanvi@Sinfully Spicy Tanvi of COURSE you can come over for dinner! It would be my pleasure entirely. Although, living in the UK, its a long way for you to travel for some dins! :)

    @Manu Thank you Manu :) That means a lot, the first of many i hope!

    @Tes Cheers for stopping by and commenting Tes! Lovely of you to say that

    @Lindsay @ Pinch of Yum I have to say I too am rather fond of a good restaurant curry, but the satisfaction of making your own scrummy curry at home (along with the money saved!) makes it entirely worth it :)

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  14. This looks really good! And affordable as well. I think I'm with you about adding a little spice!

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  15. Or I should say heat!

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  16. Yum x 100! I'm loving everything about this dish! Bookmarked to make soon!

    New to your blog; happy I found you!

    Mary xo
    Delightful Bitefuls

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  17. i still crave for my mom's chicken curry, and this makes me more tempting....looks yum..Thanx a bunch for stopping by kothiyavunu and for kind words..Hope to see ur updates with many more yummy treats.. Cheers!

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  18. That looks delicious! I'm loving your blog and the fabulous name: procrastobaker. Can't wait to see what else you come up with!

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  19. Yum! I may have to make this - it'll be a change to the curries my mum usually makes!

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  20. Thanks for dropping by! I love using coconut milk as a curry base and often when i make a dry curry for lunch, I cheat and add coconut milk and a few vegetables to it and call it another curry at night. No one has to know ;-)

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  21. @mmm204 Thank you for the lovely comments! Cant have a curry without a little kick hey :)

    @Mary @Delightful Bitefuls Mary thats such a sweet comment, thank you :) I think you could probably tell from my comment how much i loved your blog! The feeling is very much reciprocated

    @kothiyavunu.com Entirely my pleasure, you have a beautiful and diverse blog, the lamb rogan josh is especially calling out to me!

    @Claire Thomas Cheers Claire :) very kind of you to say so, i hope there are more recipes that will take your fancy!

    @Vanessa K Vanessa, im very new to your blog but ive fallen head over heels with it, its so gorgeous and has something for everyone. Thank you lots for taking the time to comment on mine and i do hope you give this a try :)

    @Kulsum@JourneyKitchen Thank you Kulsum, coconut milk is godly stuff isnt it :)

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  22. This recipe looks so good! I'm going to bookmark this.

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  23. oh yum OH YUM! i adore curries, especially coconut-y ones. i'm IN. bookmarrrrrked.

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  24. @JulieD Thank you Julie!! That is a lovely compliment to receive off someone with such a wonderful blog

    @esther Esther, there really is nothing better is there! I refuse to put my curry lovin' on hold despite the warmer weather :) Thank you for your lovely comment!

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