This Indian chicken curry recipe is for a pretty basic chicken curry, that is easy enough for beginners as well, and yet really flavorful.
Goes extremely well with just plain steamed rice, as well as rotis / chapatis.
This is my go-to chicken curry, when I just need a homestyle chicken curry that is easy yet delicious. When I am in the mood for something fancier, and I have a little more time on my hand, I make this spicy Kolhapuri chicken curry.
But this basic version is the one I make most often, and it’s actually one of the first things I learnt to cook, when I first started to cook. Though of-course, since then I have updated the recipe quite a few times to get to this current version, which has stayed my go-to version for many years now.
So if you are just looking for a simple chicken curry recipe, try this one.
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Ingredients You Need
Ingredient notes
- I prefer to use chicken leg quarter pieces, you can use chicken drumsticks or whatever you prefer.
How To Make This Indian Chicken Curry
I am sharing this recipe for my go-to quantity, which is 3 pounds of chicken leg quarters. It makes curry enough for about 6 people. For our family of 3, it is good enough for 2 times.
But if you need to make more or less, then you can adjust the serving size in the recipe card below, and it will adjust all the quantities of ingredients for you accordingly.
Marinate the chicken
- Take 3 pounds of chicken leg quarters, and start with properly cleaning them with water, and then straining off all the excess water.
- Now make the marinade, for which, in a bowl mix together – ¼ cup yogurt, ¼ cup ginger garlic paste, 1½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon red chilli powder, 1 teaspoon garam masala powder, 1 teaspoon coriander powder, ½ teaspoon cumin powder, and a ¼ teaspoon of turmeric powder.
- Apply the marinade to the chicken, ensuring to coat all the chicken pieces well.
- Let the chicken marinate for 4-6 hours or overnight.
Note: You can also add lemon in the marinade, I skip it, because I am already using enough yogurt.
Make the curry
- In a pot, lightly heat up 3-4 tablespoons of oil.
- Add 2 cups of chopped onions & 1 teaspoon of salt, and saute till the onions start to turn light brown (takes about 15 minutes).
- Add 2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste, mix it in, and saute for 2-3 minutes, just until the raw smell of ginger & garlic goes away.
- Then add in the spice powders (preferably all together, to avoid the spice powders from burning) – 2 tablespoon of chicken masala powder, 1 teaspoon of garam masala powder, 1 teaspoon of coriander powder, and ½ teaspoon of cumin powder – along with a splash of water, so that the spices don’t get burned, and lightly roast the spices for 1-2 minutes.
(Whenever I use store-bought chicken masala to flavor the chicken curry, I usually supplement with additional spice powders. But if I use homemade, then I only use chicken masala powder.) - Now add in 1½ cup of chopped tomatoes, and saute till the tomatoes cook down a bit. This will take about 5 minutes or so.
- At this point, you can also add in a few spoons of tomato paste to better bind the onions & tomatoes together in the curry. I usually substitute with tomato ketchup, as it’s readily available. 1 tablespoon of tomato ketchup is good enough, add it right after the tomatoes. (see recipe notes for more alternatives)
- When the tomatoes have cooked down, add in the marinated chicken, along with 3 cups of water, and mix everything together.
- Cook the chicken covered for 30-40 minutes, on medium flame, stirring intermittently, till the chicken is cooked through.
- Garnish with ⅓ cup of fresh chopped coriander leaves.
Notes
Using a little tomato paste helps bind the onions and tomatoes a little better. But I usually don’t have it handy, so I use tomato ketchup instead, and it works fine for me.
Alternatively, you can use tomato paste instead of chopped tomatoes, or make a paste of the roasted onions & tomatoes to have a smoother chicken curry.
But I usually don’t take out the mixie for just making a basic chicken curry (because it will be one more thing to wash!), and so I make do with tomato ketchup.
Serving Suggestion
Pair this with freshly steamed rice or even roti / chapati, based on your preference.
Popular chicken recipes to try..
⭐️ Restaurant Style Chicken Lollipop
⭐️ Easy Chicken Keema Masala
⭐️ Mangalorean Chicken Ghee Roast
⭐️ Tandoori Spiced Chicken Wings
⭐️ Spicy Pepper Chicken (Dry)
⭐️ Kolhapuri Chicken Curry
⭐️ Easy Chicken Fried Rice
⭐️ Instant Pot Chicken Biryani
As always, I hope you found this recipe useful. If you did, please let me know your rating ⭐️ and feedback 📲 in the comments below, or simply rate the recipe right on the recipe card. I’d really appreciate it. ❤️
📖 RECIPE
Indian Chicken Curry Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For chicken marination
- 3 pounds chicken (leg quarters)
- ¼ cup yogurt
- ¼ cup ginger garlic paste
- 1½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
For chicken curry
- 3-4 tablespoon oil
- 2 cup chopped onions
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- 2 tablespoon chicken masala powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- 1½ cup chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
- 3 cup water for curry
- ⅓ cup chopped coriander leaves
Instructions
For marinating chicken
- Take 3 pounds of chicken leg quarters, properly clean them with water, and strain off all the excess water.
- In a bowl, mix together – ¼ cup yogurt, ¼ cup ginger garlic paste, 1½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon red chilli powder, 1 teaspoon garam masala powder, 1 teaspoon coriander powder, ½ teaspoon cumin powder, and a ¼ teaspoon of turmeric powder to make a smooth marinade.
- Apply the marinade to the chicken, ensuring to coat all the chicken pieces well.
- Let the chicken marinate for 4-6 hours or overnight.
For making chicken curry
- In a pot, lightly heat up 3-4 tablespoons of oil.
- Add 2 cups of chopped onions & 1 teaspoon of salt, and saute till the onions start to turn light brown (takes about 15 minutes).
- Add 2 tablespoon ginger garlic paste, mix it in, and saute for 2-3 minutes, just until the raw smell of ginger & garlic goes away.
- Then add in the spice powders (preferably all together) – 2 tablespoon of chicken masala powder, 1 teaspoon of garam masala powder, 1 teaspoon of coriander powder, and ½ teaspoon of cumin powder – along with a splash of water, so that the spices don't get burned, and lightly roast the spices for 1-2 minutes.
- Now add in 1½ cup of chopped tomatoes, and saute till the tomatoes cook down a bit. This will take about 5 minutes or so.
- At this point, you can also add in a few spoons of tomato paste to better bind the onions & tomatoes together in the curry. I usually substitute with tomato ketchup, as it's readily available. 1 tablespoon of tomato ketchup, right after the tomatoes. (see notes for alternatives)
- When the tomatoes have cooked down, add in the marinated chicken, along with 3 cups of water, and mix everything together.
- Cook the chicken covered for 30-40 minutes, stirring intermittently, till the chicken is cooked through.
- Garnish with ⅓ cup of chopped coriander leaves.
- Serve hot with rice or chapati / naan.
Notes
- I prefer to use chicken leg quarter pieces, you can use chicken drumsticks or whatever you prefer.
- Whenever I use store-bought chicken masala to flavor the chicken curry, I usually supplement with additional spice powders. But if I use homemade, then I only use chicken masala powder.
- Using a little tomato paste helps bind the onions and tomatoes a little better. But I usually don’t have it handy, so I use tomato ketchup instead, and it works fine for me. Alternatively, you can use tomato paste instead of chopped tomatoes, or make a paste of the roasted onions & tomatoes to have a smoother chicken curry. But I usually don’t take out the mixie for just making a basic chicken curry (because it will be one more thing to wash!), and so I make do with tomato ketchup.
Nutrition
Video Recipe
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