A delicious Indian Spiced Chicken Stew, with potatoes, tomatoes and a blend of Indian spices slow cooked for a complete and comforting meal.
If you're a fan of dishes like Tikka Masala or Butter chicken, you will love this one! I spied this Indian Spiced Chicken Stew in the latest Bon Apetit and immediately slotted it in for an upcoming meal. We enjoyed it for dinner last night and it was a big hit. It's flavourful, hearty, warming and spicy and a great "throw everything in a pot and let it cook all afternoon" kind of dish. The spicy tomato and cream sauce was delicious and plentiful, great for sopping up with the naan bread. I also loved the addition of potatoes to this dish (and I wasn't sure I would). All in all ... everyone agreed it's a keeper!
This stew has a great combination of spices that work beautifully together. Don't be intimidated by the long list. They are pretty common spices, so if you're spice rack is fairly well-stocked, you'll be good. The cayenne pepper provides some nice warming heat in this dish. You may want to use the lesser amount of cayenne or leave out altogether if you're not a fan of heat or if you're feeding small kids.
Cook's Notes for Indian-spiced Chicken Stew
Serve this stew with a big dollop of plain yogurt, some naan bread and a generous sprinkling of fresh mint (most traditional), cilantro or parsley. Alternately, this would be lovely spooned over warm basmati rice.
I made this dish on the stove-top in my Dutch oven, but you could very easily do it in your slow-cooker. I used a couple of bone-in/skin on chicken breasts and thighs and took the chicken off the bone before adding the potatoes.
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs would also work. You'd save the step of taking the chicken off the bone, but I do think the bone and skin probably add nice flavour to this one.
I served this stew up in my cast iron fajita pans. It's just a fun way to enjoy a meal and they're also great for fajitas, too :)
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Indian Spiced Stew with Chicken and Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 large skin-on/bone-in chicken breasts ((or can use boneless))
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 small onion (finely chopped)
- 4 cloves garlic (chopped)
- 1 Tbsp finely grated ginger
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tsp garam masala
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 - 3/4 tsp cayennne pepper ((depending on how spicy like it or you can omit))
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth ((plus a bit more thinning, if necessary))
- 3/4 cup tomato purée
- 1/2 cup heavy cream ((can use a lighter cream))
- 1/2 pound small Yukon Gold potatoes,sliced 1/4" thick ((or small fingerlings, sliced in half lengthwise))
Instructions
- Heat vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place skin side down in to the pan. Cook until golden brown without turning, about 8–10 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate.
- To the same pot, add onion, garlic, and ginger to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is very soft and golden brown, about 8–10 minutes. Add tomato paste, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, coriander, cayenne and cook, stirring often, until tomato paste is beginning to darken, about 4 minutes.
- Add chicken pieces, chicken broth, tomato purée, and cream to pot. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until chicken is almost falling off the bone and liquid is slightly thickened, about 1 1/2 hours. If using bone-in chicken, remove chicken to a plate and carefully remove chicken from the bone and discard skin and bones. Cut or pull chicken into bite-sized pieces. Return chicken pieces to the pot.
- Add potatoes to the pot and cook, partially covered, until potatoes are fork-tender and sauce is thickened, 30-45 minutes. *Check and stir every so often to ensure the sauce hasn't thickened to much and potatoes aren't sticking to the bottom of the pot. If sauce is too thick, thin with a bit more chicken stock.
- To serve, spoon stew into a shallow bowl and place a large dollop of yogurt on one side. Sprinkle with some fresh chopped mint, cilantro or parsley and serve with naan bread on the side. Alternately, spoon stew over some warm basmati rice.
Notes
Nutrition
Adapted from Bon Apetit February 2014
Patty says
Can I use a sub for the cream? Maybe a can of coconut milk or cream?
Jennifer says
Hi Patty and sure. Just stir the coconut milk first if using that, and note that you only need 1/2 cup of it.
Ashley says
Hello, I was wondering if I could freeze this after I’ve made it? It sounds delicious but it’s only me and my husband and he’s not huge on leftovers after one day.
Jennifer Maloney says
Hi Ashley and yes, it should freeze. The only question mark would be the potatoes. The texture might change slightly with freezing, but wouldn't compromise the enjoyment of the dish.
Irene(formerly an Ontarian, now PEI) says
Made this recently & it was delicious. Used two sweet potatoes & added some spinach. Did cut back on the cayenne pepper as I ended up with multiple sneezes from the fresh turmeric! Wasn't sure how spicy the dish would be so was cautious. Lovely flavour!
Wasn't sure what you meant by tomato puree. Had some leftover diced tomatoes so ended up using the immersion blender.
Going into my regular rotation - along with many of your receipes!
Jennifer says
Hi Irene and so glad you enjoyed this. It's a wonderful dish :) As for the tomato puree, I usually use either crushed (canned) tomatoes or jarred Passata, but blending diced works too.
Julie says
This looks amazing! I was browsing Pinterest looking for dinner ideas and this had to be it! I couldn't commit to standing by the oven for hours so I'm using a slow cooker. Prepped according to instructions, dumped it into the slow cooker (minus the cream) I love the idea of adding spinach and will add the cream and spinach at the end. We eat a lot of Indian inspired dishes mostly because many are vegitarian. Hubby will enjoy his non-veg meal tonight :)
Jennifer says
Thanks Julie. Let me know how it turns out in the slow cooker!
Zoe Lau says
Thank you for delicious recipe! Your pictures looks incredible! We tried this out just this past week and used sweet potatoes instead of potatoes - IT WAS SO GOOD. I've had curries all my life and this is seriously top-notch. I loved how tender the chicken was! Our guests from singapore loved it!!!! Will be making this again!!
This is how it turned out (you can check out our blog):
https://sprinkleofvanillasugar.wordpress.com/2016/04/11/indian-spiced-stew-with-chicken-and-sweet-potato-gf-dairy-free-oil-free/
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it, Zoe! Looks great and I love your addition of sweet potatoes :)
Jane Austin says
Hi Jennifer I love your website and this recipe sounds delish! I can't wait to try it! Do you photograph your own dishes? The photo is gorgeous.
Jennifer says
Hi Jane and thanks very much :) And yes, I do all my own photography. It's always a challenge, but I like a challenge!
Yasmine Melbye Gonzales says
I can't wait to try this! My mouth is already watering!
Can I swap the potatoes for lentils? Also can it be frozen?
Jennifer says
Hi Yasmine. Yes, I think lentils would be nice and I think it would freeze pretty well.
Kathryn says
Just found your website and love the recipes. I'm very excited to explore them!
Question about garam masala - isn't it just a combination of the other spices you already have in the recipe? Or is there more to it than that?
Jennifer says
Hi Kathryn and thanks very much :) And yes, there is a bit of overlap between garam masala and a few of the other ingredients, but garam masala has a few extra ones, that adds to the flavour profile in a nice way.
K. Darlene says
Unlike most reviewers I don't care for Indian food. I made this for guests --- and it was fabulous! Everyone loved it - including me! I cut the cayenne pepper in half (glad I did - it was plenty spicy) and I added the cream at the end. Also- I used the dark meat of the chicken. I am convinced it has more flavor and no one seemed to notice! This is a wonderful dish and I will prepare it often!
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it, Darlene :) I agree, dark meat chicken definitely has more flavour!
Crystal says
One of the best successes I've had while cooking -- and my first time using a dutch oven. So great, I can't wait to eat the leftovers. Thank you!
Jennifer says
So glad! You'll get lots of use out of your Dutch oven. Thanks for coming back to let me know :)
ana @ muy delish says
OMG my mouth is watering! I have to make this! Thanks Jennifer!
Jennifer says
Thanks Ana. Enjoy!
Diana says
Do you have any suggestions for trying to adapt this recipe to make it in the crockpot instead? Thanks!
Jennifer says
Hi Diana, I'm not sure this recipe is ideally suited for a crockpot, but if you wanted to use it, I would brown chicken separately first, then do the simmer portion in the crockpot. As indicated in the recipe though, it simmers partially covered, not covered, so the results will be different if you cook it in a covered crockpot.
Hallie says
I just did some research and it should be fine in the stove. Thank you! I'm excited to try it !
Hallie says
Mine says not recommended for the stove top I believe. I'll double check. It has an enamel finish on the inside
Hallie says
If you put dutch oven in the oven what would you cook it at?
Jennifer says
Hi Hallie. I honestly don't know. Why do you want to put it in the oven instead of simmering it on top of the stove?
Kelly says
I cannot tell you how often I have revisited this recipe since I discovered it. I LOVE THIS DISH. I make it with the chicken, but more recently I made a veggie version using eggplant and chickpeas. Just as good.. that sauce makes it.
Jennifer says
Hi Kelly and yes, that sauce!! Love the idea of a veg version. My daughter is a recent vegetarian so I must try while she is home over Christmas. Happy holidays :)
Tamera says
Making this as we speak with bone in lamb! I'm sure it will be fabulous! Thanks for the recipe.
Jennifer says
Sounds delicious, Tamera. Enjoy!
Mette says
Made this tonight In the slow cooker using chicken thighs - loved it! So easy and a crowd pleases. Thank you.
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it, Mette :)
Ingrid says
I'm looking forward to making this tomorrow. I only have chicken breasts on hand. Do I need to shorten the cooking time?
Jennifer says
Hi Ingrid, You don't mention if they are bone-in, which will affect the cooking time.
Grace says
This was an absolutely delicious dish! Can't wait to try it with lamb and add some peas and carrots. Thank you!
Olivia says
This was amazing, thank you very much :)
Just like another commenter, I wondered about the cream. I ended up adding it when I added the potatoes and it was fine, so I'll just throw it in right at the start in future. I also added some carrots, because I was lazy and didn't want to cook any other vegetables.
I have a question about Garam Masala. I've seen that in certain recipes they advise to add that one at the end and not in the beginning... do you have any knowledge on this issue?
I've added it at the beginning like you said and it was amazing. Just wondering.
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it, Olivia! As for the Garam Masala, I've never heard that. My experience with Indian food is that the spices are often heated (toasted) in the beginning, but that said, maybe Garam Masala is an exception?
Olivia says
Sadly my knowledge of Indian cuisine is merely based on recipes I found online. And I've just noticed that some ask for the Garam Masala at the end. And some don't. I was hoping you might have stumbled upon this as well. Thank you again for the recipe :)
Brooke says
Nom Nom Nom . . . I love Indian food and spices. I can't wait to try this!! :)
Jennifer says
Thanks Brooke. Enjoy!
Nadine says
Hi Jennifer, the best Indian food I ever cooked & ate! It was soooo delicious, that I add it to my favourite recipe book now :)
Thank you for sharing!
Kind regards from Hamburg, Germany
Nadine
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it, Nadine! :)
Ruosi says
This looks sooo good, I really need to invest in a dutch oven :/
Jennifer says
Thanks Ruosi and yes, it's a great investment :)
Hannah says
This was awesome! I didn't follow directions, I just tossed it all into the crockpot for the day. This is by far the best Indian recipe I've tried to make. So yummy! Thank you!
Jennifer says
Glad you enjoyed it! :)
Chigo Anene says
I'm planning on making this, but I was wondering how many pototatoes equal 1/2 pounds?
Jennifer says
Hi Chigo. A 1/2 pound of potatoes would be about 1 1/2 medium potatoes. Enjoy!