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A bowl of Punjabi chicken curry garnished with cilantro and green chili, served in a metal dish on a red fabric background with a spoon nearby.
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4.89 from 9 votes

Punjabi Chicken Curry

An aromatic, spicy, flavorful North Indian Chicken Curry - this Punjabi Chicken Curry should be on your dinner menu! It makes the best leftovers.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time55 minutes
Total Time1 hour 25 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 4 servings
Author: Nisha Kapur

Ingredients

For the Marinade

  • 1 ½ pounds organic skinless boneless chicken breasts
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cloves garlic chopped
  • 1 teaspoon red chili powder
  • 1 inch piece ginger chopped

For the Chicken Curry

  • 3 tablespoons Avocado Oil you can reduce this to 2 tablespoons as well
  • 1 black cardamom moti elachi
  • 4 green cardamom pods
  • 1 cinnamon stick split in half
  • ¼ teaspoon peppercorns
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 large onion finely chopped
  • ¼ cup warm water for the onions
  • 6 cloves garlic chopped
  • 1 inch piece ginger chopped
  • 2 green chilies chopped
  • 2-3 plum tomatoes chopped
  • ¼ cup warm water for the tomatoes
  • ½ cup organic low-fat yogurt I used Whole Foods brand
  • 1 teaspoon red chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 2 teaspoon coriander powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin powder
  • 1 cup warm water for the chicken for more gravy, add 1 more cup
  • ½ teaspoon garam masala
  • 2 tablespoon kasoori methi I used MDH brand

Instructions

Marinate

  • Cube the chicken into 1 inch cubes. Marinate with salt, kashmiri red chili powder (paprika), ginger, and garlic.
  • Refrigerate for 2 hours to overnight.

For Chicken Curry

  • Use a food processor to finely chop the onions.
  • Heat up a dutch enameled castiron on medium heat. Once hot, add all the dry spices - black cardamom, green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon stick, peppercorns, bay leaf, fennel seeds, and cumin seeds. Saute for about 1 minute.
  • Then add the onions and cook for 10 minutes on low-medium heat.
  • This is what you should have.
  • Add ¼ cup water and cook down the onions even more.
  • Use a food processor to chop the ginger, garlic and green chilies.
  • Add the ginger, garlic and green chilies to the onions and cook for a minute.
  • Chop the tomatoes.
  • Add to the onion mix. Season with salt.
  • Cover and cook the masala mixture for 10 minutes on low-medium heat.
  • Once done, add ¼ cup of water to cook down the tomatoes.
  • Temper the yogurt, add a little bit at a time to avoid the mixture to curdle.
  • Cover and cook for 5 minutes on low-medium heat.
  • This is what you should have.
  • Set aside your powdered spices.
  • Add the chicken to the masala. Coat the chicken well and cook for 5 minutes on medium heat.
  • Add the powdered spices (red chili powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder) to the chicken and coat well.
  • Add a cup of water to the chicken. You can add another cup for more gravy - however I prefer thicker gravy.
  • This is what you should have.
  • Cover and cook the chicken on low-medium heat for 20-25 minutes.
  • This is what you should have.
  • Add garam masala.
  • Add dry fenugreek leaves or kasoori methi.
  • Let the chicken sit for about 20 minutes before serving, this is what you should have. You can always add more water to have more gravy.

Nutrition

Calories: 366kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 111mg | Sodium: 900mg | Potassium: 959mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 642IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 134mg | Iron: 3mg