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4.92 from 23 votes

30 minute chicken madras

You can put a restaurant quality chicken madras curry on the table in 30 minutes.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Main
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: madras curry
Servings: 4
Calories: 433kcal
Author: romain | glebekitchen

Ingredients

The onion paste

  • 2 cups onions - coarsely chopped
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 cup water

chicken madras

  • 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into 3 pieces per thigh.
  • 4 tsp madras curry powder - available at any Indian grocery
  • 1 tsp paprika - for colour
  • 2 tsp mild kashmiri chili powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp kasoor methi - dried fenugreek leaves
  • 1 1/2 2 inch piece of cinnamon bark - also called cassia bark
  • 1 tsp kosher salt - use a bit less if you are using table salt
  • big pinch butcher's grind black pepper (coarse grind) - about 1/8 tsp
  • 2 tbsp garlic ginger paste
  • 1 1/2 tbsp tomato paste plus enough water to dilute it to the consistency of tomato sauce
  • 4 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1/6 lemon - juiced

Instructions

The onion paste

  • Place the onions in a microwave safe dish and cover loosely. Microwave at 70 percent until the onions are soft and translucent. This takes 10 minutes in my 1100 watt microwave. I can't predict how long it will take in yours...
  • Remove the onions from the microwave. Be careful. They will be hot. Let them cool slightly. Place the onions, 2 tbsp vegetable oil and 1 cup of warm water in a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside.

chicken madras

  • In a small bowl, combine the madras curry powder, paprika, Kashmiri chili powder, kasoor methi, black pepper and salt. This is your spice mix.
  • Heat 4 tbsp vegetable oil in a pot over medium heat until it shimmers.
  • Toss in the cinnamon bark and let cook a few seconds. You will see little bubbles forming around the bark.
  • Add the garlic ginger paste and cook until it stops spluttering.
  • Turn the heat to medium low. Add the spice mix and stir continuously until it starts to smell really good - around 30-40 seconds. Watch it carefully. If you burn the spices at this point you have to start over.
  • Add the diluted tomato paste and stir to combine. Turn the heat up to medium. Cook for 1 minute.
  • Add the onion paste and turn the heat up to medium high. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 4 minutes. The curry will darken a bit as it cooks. Don't worry if it seems a bit dry. The chicken will release tasty, tasty juices as it cooks and you should be left with a nice amount of sauce.
  • Turn the heat down to medium low. Add the chicken and stir. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes. Flip each piece of chicken and continue cooking until the chicken is done. It's done when you measure the internal temperature and it says 170F, about 10-15 minutes. I can't tell you exactly how long this will take. I don't know how big your chicken pieces are.
  • If the curry is a bit thick add a bit of water or chicken stock and stir. Add a squeeze of lemon juice. Let the chicken madras simmer another minute or so. Taste for salt and adjust as needed.
  • Garnish with a bit of cilantro or fried shallots if desired.

Notes

You can buy garlic ginger paste but it's easy to make and homemade is way better. Here's an easy recipe for garlic ginger paste. If you cook Indian fairly often it's so worth it to whip up a batch. It will keep for a few weeks in the fridge.
 

Nutrition

Serving: 4servings | Calories: 433kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Cholesterol: 161mg | Sodium: 801mg | Potassium: 670mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 915IU | Vitamin C: 9.7mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 2.8mg