I love fusion flavors, and this curry is a flavor-bomb in your mouth! It’s got some heat, some sweetness, and a bit of umami. It goes well with rice or naan.
I recently collaborated with Afsheen, who blogs at Blessed With The Best Mommy, on her weekly Instagram series called Cooking Spinoff with Afsheen. The premise is that we both create something from each other’s respective blogs, and share our experiences on our Instagram Stories. I will tell you that narrowing it down to just one recipe from Afsheen’s blog and her IG was quite difficult! This woman is a treasure trove of recipe knowledge, and her recipes are always hits! I regularly adapt her recipe for Shimla Mirch Keema (bell pepper and minced meat curry), and it is on a regular rotation at home(the recipe can be found on her Instagram highlights).
I decided to make her Coconut Chicken Curry, and my oh my it did not dissapoint! It’s creamy, and has a unique flavor profile. It’s a crowd pleaser and like I mentioned before, goes great with rice or naan.

Coconut Chicken Curry
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 3 tablespoons neutral flavored oil
- 2 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 15-20 curry leaves
- 1 cup canned tomato sauce
- Salt, to taste
- 1 cup canned coconut milk, full-fat
- 1 green chili, whole
- Handful chopped cilantro
Instructions
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Heat oil in a large vessel over medium high heat. Add ginger garlic paste and cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add onions and cook until translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes.
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In a small bowl, combine red chili powder and turmeric. Add a couple of tablespoons of water to create a slurry. Set aside.
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Add mustard seeds and curry leaves, being careful as they may splutter in the hot oil. Cook for a minute, then add the turmeric slurry and cook for about 30 seconds.
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Add chicken, making sure to coat with the spices completely.
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Add tomato sauce and salt, and cook until the sauce starts to thicken and the oil begins to separate from the gravy. This will take a few minutes.
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Add coconut milk, cover, and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, until thickened. If sauce is too thin, increase heat and allow it to cook down.
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Remove from heat, and garnish with green chili and cilantro.
Recipe adapted from Afsheen’s Instagram page.
Is canned tomato sauce any different from regular tomato sauce or tomato paste can be used as well?
So here in the US, canned tomatoes are sold in various textures and consistencies. Tomato sauce is thin, and for this recipe you can replace the canned tomato sauce with 2 pureed fresh tomatoes. Tomato paste that is sold in the markets here is very thick; it’s tomato sauce that has been cooked down further, so tomato sauce and paste cannot be used interchangeably here. I hope that made sense 🙂