Indian recipe

My Signature Chicken Curry

Slow-cooked with fresh spices, zero added water and very little oil. All the gravy comes from the chicken, onions and tomatoes. My 1,000-subscriber thank-you recipe.

Did you know? “Curry” isn’t an Indian name for a dish. It most likely comes from the Tamil word kari, a spiced sauce, and the British used it for almost any Indian stew. Read my story →
Indian currySlow-cooked⏱ ~1 hr slow cook + 30 min marinatingFor 1½ kg chicken▶ Subscribe on YouTube
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Tick items off as you go1½ kg chicken

Chicken & marinade

  • 1½ kgchicken: boneless thighs (plus a few drumsticks or small wings if you like)
  • to tastesalt
  • to tastechilli powder (adjust to your spice tolerance)
  • someturmeric powder
  • 1 tbspGreek yogurt (just 1, so the marinade isn't watery)

Masala base

  • 8medium shallots or red onions, sliced very thin
  • 3tomatoes, sliced
  • a piece eachginger and garlic
  • 1green chilli
  • a small bunchfresh coriander (cilantro) leaves
  • a littleoil
  • a fewcurry leaves (the secret ingredient)

Whole spices

  • somecinnamon sticks
  • somecardamom pods
  • somecloves
  • a tiny bitfennel seeds
  • generousblack peppercorns
  • 1bay leaf (if you have it)

Ground spices

  • to tastesalt (for the masala; the marinade already has some)
  • generousturmeric powder
  • someKashmiri chilli powder (for colour, not heat)
  • somegaram masala
  • 3 heaped tspcoriander powder

To finish

  • a fewthin ginger juliennes
  • a handfulfresh coriander, chopped
  1. 1
    Pick the right chicken. Use boneless thighs; drumsticks or small wings are fine too. Avoid using breast alone, as it goes dry and rubbery over the long cooking time.
  2. 2
    Marinate. Mix the chicken with salt, chilli powder, turmeric and 1 tbsp of Greek yogurt. Even 30 minutes helps.
  3. 3
    Slice the onions very thin. Shallots or red onions have more flavour. A food-processor slicing attachment works brilliantly; by hand, slice as thinly and evenly as you can.
  4. 4
    Slice the tomatoes. A knife or the food processor is fine.
  5. 5
    Make the paste. Grind the ginger, garlic, green chilli and a little fresh coriander to a smooth paste.
  6. 6
    Heat a heavy-bottomed pan. Use your best pan, as it holds the heat steady. Keep it on medium-high (adjust for your stove) and add a little oil.
  7. 7
    Toast the whole spices. Add cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, a tiny bit of fennel, plenty of black pepper and a bay leaf. Toast for just a few seconds.
  8. 8
    Add the paste, then the onions.
  9. 9
    Cook the onions down. Take your time: soft and mushy, not brown or caramelised. When you move them you should see oil, not water bubbling. They reduce by about half.
  10. 10
    Add a few curry leaves. They give the curry a lovely aroma.
  11. 11
    Add the tomatoes and ground spices. Add salt, turmeric, Kashmiri chilli, garam masala and 3 heaped tsp of coriander powder.
  12. 12
    Cook the masala. Mix well until the raw smell of the spices goes, the tomatoes lose almost all their water, and oil shows on the pan.
  13. 13
    Add the chicken. Coat every piece in the masala. The pan looks full now, but the chicken shrinks as it cooks.
  14. 14
    Cover and slow cook. Reduce to low heat (3.5 on my stove, down from 6.5), set a 15-minute timer and leave it alone. Don't add any water.
  15. 15
    Check at 15 minutes. Juices are releasing and a glaze is forming. Cover again and keep slow cooking for 45 minutes to an hour in total.
  16. 16
    At about 55 minutes it's ready. The chicken is tender and almost immersed in a thick, glossy gravy, all from its own juices.
  17. 17
    Finish. Top with thin ginger juliennes and fresh coriander.

Tips from the video

Zero water, really. Only 1 tbsp of yogurt goes in the marinade so it stays thick. All the liquid comes from the chicken, onions and tomatoes as they slow cook.
No breast-only curries. Breast is too lean for long cooking and turns dry and rubbery. Thighs stay juicy.
Thin onions, cooked soft, not browned. Look for oil, not water, bubbling when you move them.
Use a heavy-bottomed pan. It holds the heat and keeps the temperature stable during the long cook.
Kashmiri chilli is for colour. The heat already comes from the chilli powder in the marinade.

💡 Extra tips, not in the video Bonus tips

No blender? This recipe also tastes great if you just crush the ginger and garlic with a pestle and mortar.
No time for the marinade or slow cooking? Skip the marinade and simmer on medium heat for 30 minutes instead of slow cooking on low heat.
Serve it with steamed rice, chapati, or Kerala-style appam.
The story behind the dish

How I finally cracked chicken curry

For a very long time, the chicken curry I made was not that great. I loved restaurant-style chicken curry, where the chicken just melts into the gravy, and I always wondered what they did differently.

I used to make it only with breast pieces, because they're boneless and the family wasn't too keen on drumsticks. Then one day I tried the exact method shown in this video, but with chicken wings, and the difference between breast and wings was tremendous.

I thought I had finally figured out chicken curry, until I made the same recipe with chicken thighs, to see if I could keep it boneless somehow. It hit all the right spots. When my daughter tasted it, she said it was the best chicken curry I had ever made.

It feels so good when you find the 'formula' for a recipe that really works, doesn't it? Try the steps in the video: I promise the results are really worth the time.

Curry++ · 7 November 2026

↓ Scroll inside for more
💡
From the hacks library · added 6 Nov

Make your own chai masala

Toast whole spices for 5 minutes, blend to a powder, and add a pinch whenever you make tea. It's homemade masala chai in seconds. From Masala Chai →

Browse all hacks →

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