Malabar Chicken Curry (2024)

Whisk Affair › Recipes › › Chicken Curries

Ingredients

Chicken – For this recipe, Try using bone-in, skinless chicken. Bones release flavors, making the curry taste delicious.

However, it can also be made using boneless chicken cubes.

Oil – For an authentic taste, use coconut oil. If you don’t have it, use any cooking oil.

Curry Leaves – For the best flavor, use fresh curry leaves. They add a lovely South Indian touch to the recipe.

Spice Powders – To add a bit of taste, add coriander powder, turmeric powder, Kashmiri red chili powder, and black pepper powder.

Tomatoes – The curry base uses fresh, ripe tomatoes.

Coconut Paste – This ingredient distinguishes it from other chicken curries. To make coconut paste, blend chopped fresh coconut with water in a high-speed blender.

If fresh coconut is not available, use frozen coconut. You will get it in the freezer section of any Indian grocery store.

DO NOT use desiccated dry coconut to make this recipe.

Others – You will also need some basic ingredients such as red onions, green chilies, ginger-garlic paste, and salt. You can adjust green chilies according to your heat preference.

For Tempering – The tempering is optional, but it adds great flavor. The chicken curry is tempered with a coconut oil tadka of shallots, brown mustard seeds, and fresh coconut.

How To Make Malabar Style Chicken Curry

Heat 4 tablespoon coconut oil in a medium-sized heavy bottom pan over medium-high heat.

Once the oil is hot, add 1 cup of chopped red onions and cook until the onions turn slightly brown (8-10 minutes), stirring frequently.

Add the following ingredients and cook for 2-3 minutes.

• 15-20 curry leaves
• 3-4 green chilies (slit into half)
• 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste

Add the following ingredients and cook for 10-15 seconds.

• 2 tablespoon coriander powder
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper powder

Now add 1 cup of chopped tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes. Mash the tomatoes from the back of a ladle.

Add 2 pounds (1 kg) bone-in skinless chicken (cut into 1 and ½-inch pieces) and cook for 3-4 minutes on high heat.

If bone-in chicken is not your thing, you can use boneless chicken cubes too.

Add the following ingredients and mix well.

• 1 cup of fresh coconut paste
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup water

Reduce the heat to low and cover the pan using a tight-fitting lid. Cook until the chicken is tender (40-45 mins).

Stir a few times while cooking.

Open the lid and check for salt. Add more salt if needed and cook for another minute.

Heat 2 tablespoon coconut oil in a small pan over medium-high heat for tempering.

Add 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds and let them crackle for 2-3 seconds.

Add ¼ cup chopped or grated fresh coconut and ¼ cup sliced shallots to the pan.

Fry on medium-high heat until they turn slightly brown, stirring frequently.

Pour the tempering over the chicken curry and mix well. Serve hot.