Indian Coconut Chicken Curry (Murgh Malai) (2024)

Simmered in a deliciously spiced creamy coconut sauce and then topped with almonds, this coconut chicken curry (Murgh Malai) is always a hit! Quick and easy to make as well. Such a nice dinner option for an Asian-themed night.

Having grown up surrounded bycoconut trees on our little island, called Marinduque, in the Philippines I love anything with coconut flavors. And we do use coconuts (tree and fruit)for everything that you can imagine. I don’t know how our country will survive without this towering plant from the Palm family.

We use its logs to build houses, leaves for roofing, oil for cooking and making our hair shiny, coconut husks for charcoal, and of course, its meat for snacking or baking, andplain eating. In the midst ofaheatwave in the Philippines, nothing can be more refreshing than fresh coconut juice from a freshlyopened young coconut! The possibilities are truly endless and I haven’t even mentioned coconut milk!

I am actually so happy that in the food blogging world, coconut-themed recipes have arrived and made their presence felt. Coconut milk can nowbe found anywhere and not just in Asian stores but in major groceries.

Naturally, when you think of Coconut milk the first thing that comes to mind is curry. Perhaps any country in Asia that has its own version of a curry sauce uses coconut milk for the sauce. Add some coconut milk and you can almost never go wrong, well at least in my experience. And, we do use coconut milk in our mild Philippine curry, too(the freshly made milk from the coconut meat). Canned coconut milk is unheard of in my country. 🙂 That’s just the way it is.

But, I am glad I have access to coconut milk and I don’t mind if it’s canned. I haven’t ventured out making my own freshcoconut milkyet (though back in Manila, this is what we do all the time)and if ever that day comes, I will surely blog about it!

Anyway,here’s an amazing Coconut Chicken Curry from Indiaalso known as Murgi Malai in Bengali. The word murgi means chicken and malai means cream (which can either be dairy or coconut).

I used coconut milk for the entire recipe but feel free to use a dairy alternative if you prefer that. If you are a curry sauce lover, this is a must-try! My husband fell in love with it the first time I made it so I hope you do too. Enjoy!

Thisis adapted from the Best Ever Curry Cookbook – Chicken in Coconut Milk recipeby Mridula Baljekar.

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WHAT ARE THE INGREDIENTS TO MAKE INDIAN COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY (MURGH MALAI)?

2 tablespoons desiccated or shredded coconut, unsweetened
2tablespoonsground almonds
1 (14 oz) can of coconut milk
1 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon chili powder, use the heat level you prefer
11/2teaspoons grated fresh galangal or ginger (fresh makes a difference so use the fresh one if possible)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons brown sugar, optionalbut I like to temper the saltiness so I added a little sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
3 green cardamom pods* (see notes below)
1 bay leaf
2 fresh Red Thai chili, chopped or slit in two or 1/2 tsp red chili flakes (depends on the spice level you want)
4 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped plus extra for garnish
1/4 cup sliced almonds, plus extra for garnish

*If you can’t get the pods, you may use the ground cardamom instead. Just begin with 1/4 teaspoon and adjust from there as it can be potent.

HOW DO YOU MAKE INDIAN COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY (MURGH MALAI)?

In a frying pan, dry-roast thedesiccated coconut and ground almonds, just until theybecome ashade darker (be careful not to burn them).

In a large bowl, combine the coconut milk, coriander, chili powder,grated galangal or ginger, garlic,salt, and brown sugar, plus the toasted coconut and almonds.

Mix well.

Heat the vegetable oil in a deep pan to medium. Add the chicken cubes, bay leaf, and cardamom pods and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes untilthe chicken turns whitish.

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Pour in the coconut mixture and stir well to combine.

When it begins to bubble (starts to boil), add in the red chili(s), cilantro, and sliced almonds.

Cover andlower the heat to simmer andcook for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally to ensure that the meatdoes not stick to the bottom of the pan. Uncover and cook for another 2-3 minutes untilthe sauce thickens a little.Garnish with morechopped cilantro and sliced almonds, if desired. Enjoy with rice!

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Last updated on August 25th, 2023 at 06:13 pm