Dhaniya Chicken Curry | Coriander Chicken Curry

Aromatic Dhaniya Chicken Curry is cooked in a cilantro yogurt-based marinade along with tomatoes, onions, and spices. It’s perfect with a bowl of rice or naan.

With Diwali around the corner, and me going on and on about my famous Dhaniya Chicken Curry on Instastories, it was about time I shared the love.

For the longest time, I had no idea how to make Indian chicken because most of my family is vegetarian and my mom never cooked chicken at home.

Each time I tried to cook chicken, the consistency of my gravy was always off, but after numerous trials and errors over the years, I finally learned the tricks. Now I love experimenting with all sorts of Indian chicken dishes, and I can’t wait to bring you more of my specialties.

What is Dhaniya Chicken Curry?

This Dhaniya Chicken Curry recipe came about accidentally. Often times we see a bunch of Indian spices tempered in oil followed by green chilies, ginger, and garlic, but instead of making my Chicken Curry “the usual way”, I opted to blend all my aromatic Indian spices with some yogurt. Why? Because I’m lazy.

You’ll be surprised how quick and easy this dish is to make. It’s just 4 steps, literally – blend, marinate, saute, simmer.

That’s it. There is no guesswork involved, it’s simple, easy, and straightforward. This Dhaniya Chicken Curry is now a staple in my home since it is hubby approved despite the level of spice.

As the Diwali festivities begin, hope you give this Chicken Curry a try and make it a staple dish in your home.

Ingredients for Coriander Chicken Curry

Chicken: I love using organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts. It’s a healthier alternative to chicken thighs. For a richer dish, you can use chicken thighs.

Yogurt: I use Greek yogurt for marinating the chicken.

Cilantro: You’ll need lots of fresh cilantro leaves for this recipe.

Spices: 

• Cloves
• Cumin Seeds
• Green Cardamom Pods
• Cinnamon Stick
• Fennel Seeds
• Red Chili Powder 
• Coriander Powder
• Salt

Green Chilies

Ginger

Garlic

Onion

Tomatoes

Avocado Oil: Any high-heat oil will work.

Water

Dhaniya Chicken Curry is:

Aromatic
Delicious
Gluten-Free
Healthy
Made with Organic Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
Flavorful
Quick and Easy
Crowd Pleaser

How to make Dhaniya Chicken Curry recipe step by step?

Prep

1. Prepare the marinade. Add yogurt and all the spices to a food processor.

Cook

1. Heat up a dutch oven on medium heat, once hot, add oil followed by bay leaf and cumin seeds.

Serving Suggestions

• You can serve Dhaniya Chicken Curry with basmati rice – that’s how I love eating chicken curry.
• You can also serve Coriander Chicken Curry with naan which is how my husband prefers his gravy dishes.
• A side of Kachumbar Salad – just onions, tomatoes, and cucumbers would be a great addition to this dish.

Storage Suggestions

Generally speaking, Chicken Curry keeps well in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. 

If you’d like to save this chicken curry for a longer period, freeze it. It’ll last for up to 1 month in the freezer and tastes amazing even a month later.

Frequently Asked Questions

1, How can I make Dhaniya Chicken Curry dairy-free?

Simply replace Greek yogurt with vegan yogurt and you’ve got yourself dairy-free chicken curry. You can also omit yogurt altogether and try and replace it with cashews for that richness.

2. Is Coriander Chicken Curry gluten-free?

Yes! This recipe is already gluten-free.

3. How do I make Cilantro Chicken Curry healthier?

• I used organic boneless skinless chicken breasts which is the healthier part of a chicken.
• You can cut down on the oil by 1 tbsp, but this will affect the consistency of the gravy so I don’t recommend it.
• I am already using 2% Greek Yogurt here so I don’t recommend using fat-free yogurt.
• Instead of white rice, you can use brown rice or quinoa. Instead of naan, you can serve the chicken curry with roti.

More Chicken Recipes

• Punjabi Chicken Curry
• Chicken Kebab Burger
• Shredded Tandoori Chicken Tacos
• Instant Pot Chipotle Chicken Tinga Tacos
• Chicken Seekh Kebab

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Dhaniya Chicken Curry - Coriander Chicken Curry

Aromatic Dhaniya Chicken Curry is cooked in a cilantro yogurt-based marinade along with tomatoes, onions, and spices. It's perfect with a bowl of rice or naan.

4.73 from 11 votes

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time35 mins

Total Time55 mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Diet Healthy, Gluten-free, Dairy-free option

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 362kcal

Author: Nisha

Equipment

Le Creuset 3.5 qt

Ingredients

for the chicken marinade

• 10.5 ounces Fage 2% Greek yogurt
• 1/4 tsp peppercorns
• 4 cloves
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 4 green cardamom pods
• 1/2 piece cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 2-3 green chilies*
• 6 cloves garlic
• 2 inch piece ginger
• 1/2 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves
• 1.5 pounds organic boneless skinless chicken breasts**

for cooking chicken

• 2 tbsp avocado oil
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 medium onion finely chopped
• 2 plum tomatoes chopped
• marinated chicken
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup water optional for more gravy
• salt to taste

Instructions

• Prepare the marinade. Add yogurt and all the spices in a food processor.
• Add the fresh cilantro leaves.
• Blend until combined.
• Set marinade aside.
• Chop the chicken into small 1/2 inch pieces.
• Pour the marinade into the chicken.
• Coat the chicken. Cover the chicken and place bowl into the fridge for 3 hours at least and up to 24 hours.
• Chop the onion.
• Heat up a dutch oven on medium heat, once hot, add oil followed by bay leaf and cumin seeds.
• Add onions. Saute for 5 minutes until golden brown.
• While the onions brown, chop the tomatoes.
• Now add the tomatoes to the onions. Stir and season with salt.
• Reduce heat to low-medium heat. Cover and cook the onions and tomatoes until a paste-like consistency is formed, about 5-7 minutes.
• This is what you should have.
• Add the marinated chicken to the onion-tomato mixture.
• Stir. Add the water at this time. Cook the chicken for 5 minutes.
• Cover chicken with a lid and cook for 20 minutes. Keep checking and stirring in between. Notice the water will slowly evaporate.
• Once the chicken curry is at your desired consistency, check to make sure the chicken is cooked through. Also note, once at rest, the chicken gravy will gradually thicken. Turn off the stove.
• Let the chicken curry sit for about 15 minutes so the flavors marry together. Serve with brown rice, white rice, quinoa, or naan.

Notes

* Spice Level: the spice level in this chicken curry is just right. If you prefer more spice, go ahead and add another green chilly. Similarly, for less spice, don't omit the green chilly in this recipe, but rather reduce the red chili powder from 1/2 tsp to 1/4 tsp, or skip.

** Chicken Type: for more richness, you can use dark meat, such as use boneless, skinless chicken thighs. You can also use legs if you prefer.

Nutrition

Calories: 362kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 45g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 113mg | Sodium: 608mg | Potassium: 823mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 486IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 145mg | Iron: 2mg

Tried this recipe?Mention @honeywhatscooking or tag #honeywhatscooking!

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