Creamy Chicken Curry Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

What makes curry creamier? ›

Coconut milk or cream:

For a rich and creamy curry, coconut milk or cream can be a fantastic thickening agent. They not only add creaminess but also a delightful tropical flavour. Simply pour in some coconut milk or cream and let it simmer until your sauce reaches the desired consistency.

Puree the ingredients with either an immersion blender or a regular blender. Return to pan and add lemon juice plus salt to taste. Now add your chicken and simmer in the curry on medium-low to medium until the chicken is cooked through. Once cooked through, add the heavy whipping cream, then stir.

The easiest way to fix a bland and tasteless curry is by adding spices like red chili powder, cumin, coriander, garam masala, curry leaves and turmeric. Just make a quick tempering and pour over the curry to give it a nice punch of spices and herbs.

The actual sweetness and creaminess of such curries meanwhile, usually comes from fried onions and either cashews and/or dairy products. Instead of (or in addition to) onion, ground coconut may be used. White poppy seeds and/or watermelon seeds are also used in some creamy sauces.

Build a deep flavour

The three core ingredients of almost any Indian curry are garlic, onion and ginger. There are a few styles of curries that don't use garlic to ensure subtle flavour isn't overwhelmed, but it's a good rule of thumb that those three ingredients are likely to be included.

Umami is one of the basic five tastes and is often described as a meaty, savoury deliciousness that deepens a dish's flavour. Natural foods that peak umami taste receptors include tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and roasted spice. Add umami ingredients sparingly to your curry dish for a deepened and elevated flavour.

It is thicker, has a higher fat content and is scoop-able throughout. Coconut milk and cream are mostly interchangeable in recipes such as curries and soups. If you prefer a richer flavour and texture, try coconut cream or vice versa. However, be careful when substituting coconut milk and cream in baked goods.

Clotted cream is amazing and it doesn't just have to be used on scones! By adding it to this curry it gives it that nice creamy flavour, but I do find it very subtle so its not over powering. Funny enough it makes it almost taste like a korma but has more of a tomato flavour than coconut.

What cream is best for curries? ›

The most common way of making curries or gravies creamy and rich, is to add heavy cream or full cream to them.

Tomato puree/ paste

Adding tomato puree is probably the most common method of thickening curry sauces. Simply add the tomato puree during the cooking process rather than adding it at the end. This will help to thicken your curry or pasta sauce from the beginning, speeding up the cooking time.

Onion, Garlic, Ginger: This trio adds depth and forms the foundational flavor of the curry. Chicken Broth: Forms the savory base of the curry sauce. Cornstarch: Used to thicken the sauce. Frozen Peas: Add color, texture, and sweetness to the dish, offering a nice contrast to the savory and spicy elements of the curry.

Curries can be bland if you haven't used enough of the base aromatics of garlic, ginger, and onion. The onion should be caramelized in oil until well browned and flavorful. Spices should not be old enough to lose potency and preferably should be toasted and ground yourself.

Too much liquid or broth is added during cooking. Short cooking time or not enough simmering time for the sauce to reduce. Low-heat cooking: you need medium-high to high heat to cook off excess liquid. Cooking the curry with the lid: all the evaporated water will collect in the lid and get added back into the curry.

Coconut milk and cream are mostly interchangeable in recipes such as curries and soups. If you prefer a richer flavour and texture, try coconut cream or vice versa. However, be careful when substituting coconut milk and cream in baked goods.

Heavy cream is commonly used to make gravies rich and creamy. Some of our most beloved dishes, such as butter chicken, shahi paneer, malai kofta, korma, etc., all require the use of heavy cream. After all, it's what gives these dishes their impeccable taste. Without it, they'll just taste like ordinary curry.

Best way to thicken is is to grate a potato or two in there. Potato is delicious in curries and adds creaminess naturally. I also like to turn some dry coconut flakes to powder using a coffee grinder and add it in. It intensifies the coconut flavor and thickens at the same time.