Kerala chicken stew. Comforting curry that’s hearty and filling, this stew is traditionally served with rice pancakes (palappam) for a delicious start to a special day. With the beautiful flavors of coconut milk and coconut oil, this subtly spiced stew is guaranteed to be a family favorite. Great for a chilly winter day!
There’s nothing fancy about the good old stew, it’s just the comfort food that we crave on cold nights. In fact, every cuisine has its own version of heartwarming stews made with protein or simply veggies. And the ideal way to enjoy it is with authentic breads.
This Kerala chicken stew is all about succulent bites of chicken simmered in coconut based sauce. Traditionally, this stew is served with beautifully soft rice pancakes (appams or palappams), but it also pairs well with parathas, rotis, and even bread. Personally, I love the silky smooth texture of the gorgeous white sauce that’s slightly sweet from the coconut milk.
How To Make Kerala Chicken Stew
Making this chicken stew at home is straightforward. The chicken is fried in a few dry spices until they are browned and then simmered in coconut milk. Of course, there are different ways to make this very popular classic recipe. I’ll tell you about my favorite version.
Start with frying the dry spices in oil. Although the traditional choice of oil in this recipe is coconut oil, you can also use vegetable oil. For the dry spices, I used a combination of cardamoms, cinnamon, cloves and star anise. As I mentioned, this stew is subtly spiced, and these are the only spices used in this dish alongside a touch of garam masala. These spices impart a beautiful aroma to the dish.
Next up, add onions, ginger, garlic, green chilies and curry leaves. As the flavors used in this Kerala chicken stew are very mild, make sure all the ingredients are fresh. The heat of the curry comes from green chilies. So, feel free to add more or less depending on your taste.
Once the onions turn golden, brown the chicken, and then add potatoes, carrots and thin coconut milk. Thin coconut milk is, technically, the canned coconut milk and thick coconut milk is canned coconut cream. Even though coconut milk freshly squeezed from fresh coconut is highly recommended in this recipe, the store-bought versions would be just perfect.
Why both thin and thick coconut milk? Just because thick coconut milk will split when boiled. Ideally, cook the chicken first in the thin coconut milk. Once the chicken is cooked through, you will also need to add the remaining spices – garam masala and freshly ground black pepper. Simmer this for a minute before adding in the thick coconut milk or coconut cream.
Finally, add in thick coconut milk or coconut cream and heat the stew without boiling it. Remember the silky smooth texture is key in this Kerala chicken stew recipe.
I also like to add two different garnishes to this stew – fried cashew nuts and fried shallots. They add another level of flavor and texture to this chicken stew.
A super simple chicken stew recipe that tastes great with your favorite flatbread!
More Chicken Curry Recipes:
- Mango Chicken Curry
- Easy Chicken Curry
- Chicken Dopiaza | Chicken Do Pyaza
- Chicken Madras
- Authentic Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe
- Restaurant Style Butter Chicken
- Chicken Chickpea Curry
Kerala Chicken Stew | Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil coconut oil preferred
- 4 cardamom pods crushed
- 1 cinnamon stick broken into small pieces
- 4 cloves
- 1 star anise
- ½ cup thinly sliced onions
- 3 garlic cloves peeled and chopped
- 1- inch fresh ginger peeled and chopped
- 2 tablespoons or more chopped green chilies
- 1 sprig of curry leaves
- 800 g boneless or bone-in chicken, cut into 3 cm pieces
- 1 cup diced potatoes
- 1 cup diced carrots
- 1 cup thin coconut milk canned coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper black pepper powder
- ¼ cup thick coconut milk canned coconut cream
Garnish:
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ¼ cup sliced shallots
- ¼ cup cashew nuts
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.
- Add cardamom pods, cinnamon stick, cloves and star anise. Stir fry for 1 minute or until aromatic.
- Add onions, garlic, ginger, green chilies and curry leaves. Saute, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes or until browned.
- Add chicken. Season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until browned.
- Add potatoes, carrots and thin coconut milk. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes or until the chicken pieces
are cooked through. - Add garam masala, ground black pepper and thick coconut milk or coconut cream. Stir to combine. Do not boil the sauce. Heat through.
- To garnish, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium frying pan. Add sliced shallots. Fry, stirring, for 2 minutes or until golden. Drain on an absorbent towel. To the same oil, add cashew nuts. Fry, stirring, for 1 minute or until golden. Add
fried shallots and cashew nuts to the stew. Stir to combine.
Serve with:
Video
Notes
- Get the recipe for homemade coconut milk here
- You can also add green peas if you like
- The classic recipe uses chicken with bone, however, you can also use boneless chicken
- Use coconut oil for authentic taste
- Serve with roti, paratha, appam, idiyappam and bread
- If the sauce is too thin, mash a few potatoes in the sauce
Nutrition
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