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Crock Pot Curry Chicken

The first time I ate curry chicken (I mean REAL curry chicken) was when I was in college. I tutored twin girls from Sri Lanka every Wednesday afternoon, and their mom would pay me with food. She would cook an assortment of goodies each week and always send home extras for my husband. Before they moved back to their home island, they invited my husband and me over for a Sri Lankan feast. We ate until we could not eat one more bite, and then the twins’ dad prepared us even more food. So, we ate some more! I have loved curry ever since that night. Perhaps it’s because of what it represents for me – a pure memory that will never escape.  

There are many possibilities with curry chicken (and crock pot cooking in general). If you see something you don’t like or don’t have, simply leave it out. If you have something available, add it in. We are blessed to have an Indian Spice store in our town, so that’s where I get most of my spices (I spent around $6 for all the spices and peppers in this recipe and I have plenty left over). If you follow this recipe exactly you will have a FULL FLAVOR dish that is truly Sri Lankan in style!

Cut 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts into bite sized pieces. Combine 2 tablespoons white vinegar, 1/4 cup curry powder, 1/2 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper in the crock pot. This will make your chicken nice and tender. It also gives the curry a chance to soak right in and do it’s magic.

Wrap up your 8 cardamon pods, 6 whole cloves, and cinnamon stick in a used (clean) tea bag. Wrap your 10 curry leaves in another tea bag. This is not required, but will allow you to easily find these things when it’s time to take them out.

Add the two spice bags, 1 cup chopped onion, 3 peppers sliced lengthwise (but not cut into two), 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 3 cloves minced garlic, and 2 tablespoons tomato paste to crock pot. No need to stir. I buy 99 cent produce bags when they have them on sale at my local grocery store. I then sauté peppers and onions together and freeze them so that I always have them available. I just popped one of these into the crock pot (saving time and money).

Cut 3-4 potatoes into bite sized pieces then coat them with 2 tablespoons of curry powder. Place potatoes on top of chicken and pour 1 cup of water or chicken broth on top. Cook on high for 2 hours, then low for 3-4 more hours (until potatoes are soft and chicken is done). I take out the spice bags and peppers after 3 hours so that the flavors don’t overtake the dish. You can cut the peppers and use them for this dish or freeze them to have ready for another dish. Add the coconut milk (or milk of your choice) and cook an additional 20-30 minutes.

This curry chicken is very flavorful and taste great served over rice of your choice. We also go very traditional and eat it with Tandoori Naan. Enjoy!

Crock Pot Curry Chicken

  • 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
  • 3-4 potatoes (baking or sweet), cut into bite sized pieces
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons curry powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon salt, or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
  • 1 cup chopped onions (I also used peppers)
  • 3 green chile peppers, sliced lengthwise but not in two
  • 6-8 green cardamon pods
  • 6 whole cloves
  • 10 curry leaves
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 cup water or chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk, or other heavy cream or milk
  1. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces. Combine the vinegar, 1/4 cup curry powder, salt, and pepper in the crock pot. Toss to coat the chicken.
  2. Add chopped onions, sliced chile peppers, cardamon pods, cloves, curry leaves, cinnamon stick, ginger, garlic, and tomato paste to chicken mixture.
  3. Cut potatoes into bite size pieces then coat with remainder 2 tablespoons of curry powder. Place potatoes in crock pot.
  4. Add water or chicken broth to crock pot.
  5. Cook on high 2 hours then low 3-4 more hours or until potatoes are soft and chicken is done.
  6. Add coconut milk or other heavy cream or milk at the end and let cook for 20-30 more minutes.

Note #1: I wrap up the cardamon pods, cloves, cinnamon stick, and curry leaves in used tea bags so that I can take them out without having to hunt them down.

Note #2: I take out the tea bags full of spices and the peppers after 3 hours. I feel that leaving them in any longer makes the flavor too strong and takes away from the curry flavor.

About Lexie McNeil

Lexie is a follower of Jesus, the wife of the very talented Stephen McNeill, and a work-at-home mother of two. Her passions include spending time with friends and family, reading, traveling, and teaching. In an effort to live more naturally and frugally, she started Lexie:Naturals, where she makes and sells natural skin care products. She loves sharing these passions with others on her blog and helping other families catch the vision of living a more natural lifestyle. You can follow Lexie on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram!

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Comments

  1. Christina Rottinger says

    a 1/4 CUP of curry powder? rly? LOL i have this tiny little mccormick curry powder shaker. 🙂

    Reply

    • Lexie says

      Yes! You can add less if you don’t want it to be as spicy. As I mentioned, we have an Indianarket near us so I buy it in bags. 🙂

      Reply

  2. BushidoMama says

    This recipe is fabulous! I did not have cardamom pods, so I omitted them. I also substituted bay leaves for curry leaves. Out of my family of nine, EVERYONE loved it–even our picky eater had seconds! It’ll definitely be a repeat, and I’ll try it with the cardamom pods and curry leaves next time.

    Reply

  3. Marni says

    Found you through Pintrest and I absolutely love your recipes! My girls and I have had a blast trying several out but this is our favorite so far! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

  5. April @ The 21st Century Housewife says

    What a lovely memory, and what a wonderful recipe! I like that it can be cooked in the crock pot, and the idea of using the tea bags to make the spices easier to remove too.

    Reply

  6. Beth @ Aunt Bs Kitchen says

    Thank you for sharing this recipe. I’m always looking for new crock pot suppers. This one looks delicious.

    Reply

  7. Anne @ Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy says

    This sounds fabulous! Unfortunately, my husband HATES curry, so I will never make it, haha!

    Reply

      • Lexie says

        Stacy, you SHOULD try it! You can leave out some of the curry if you want. Just make sure you take the cinnamon, cardamon, and cloves out after a few hours or it will REALLY overtake the dish without as much curry. There are also SEVERAL different types of curry. Just smell them all and pick the one you like the best. Mine has FUNUGREEK in it… perfect for this nursing mom!

        Reply

  8. Nick says

    Followed you over from your site. This is the perfect recipe for the meal we wanted to try. Thanks for the share!

    Reply