This dairy free Indian Chicken Stew is on the table in under an hour on the stove OR in under 15 minutes in the Instant Pot. Loaded with flavor and excellent served over jasmine rice or cauliflower rice, this is a dish the whole family will love!
ORIGINALLY POSTED: 11/7/2012 | UPDATED: 3/8/2018
My husband loves stews– chicken, beef and fish stews count among his favorites. He’s not really one for cooking but a couple of months ago he made a Brazilian Fish Stew from Saveur Magazine, which was unbelievable, and has been asking for me to make another interesting stew ever since.
Good thing I had this Braised Bone-In Chicken Thighs with Indian Flavors recipe from the The New York Times tucked away from last year. My Indian Chicken Stew recipe is quite different from theirs but I was truly inspired by it.
It comes together really fast and is a new favorite around here. My toddler taste-tested the sauce and said, “Ohhhhhh, Yum!” and my husband said, “What do I need to do to make this a weekly staple?”
I served it with this Spiced Coconut Rice and some quickly seared greens but this Punjabi Cabbage or Indian-Spiced Whole Roasted Cauliflower would also be fantastic side dishes.
NOTES:
- If you don’t want to use light coconut milk, use 3/4 cup of whole fat coconut milk and 3/4 cup of water or broth.
INSTANT POT INSTRUCTIONS:
- Follow “Prep” instructions in recipe card below.
- Turn Instant Pot on to “Saute”. Add coconut oil, garlic, jalapeno, ginger and onion. Saute 3 to 4 minutes until beginning to soften and aromatic.
- Add chicken and spices along with watery coconut milk liquid (reserve the solid coconut milk fat for later) from can. Close lid, set to “Sealed” and “Manual, High Pressure, 5 Minutes”
- When cooking time is up, use a QR (quick release) to immediately release pressure. Turn off Instant Pot and add remaining coconut milk solids, 1 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and 1/2 T fish sauce. Stir, taste, adjust seasoning if necessary, serve and Enjoy!
Inspired By: Braised Chicken Thighs with Indian Flavors, March 28th, 2011 – The New York Time
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
Individual Serving is 1 Cup -- Serves 4
- 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil
- 8 medium cloves garlic chopped
- 1 small jalapeno chopped
- 2 inch piece fresh ginger root peeled and chopped
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs trimmed of any visible fat
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 14.5 ounce can light coconut milk (1.5 cups)
- 1/2 T fish sauce
- 1 cup fresh cilantro roughly chopped
Prep garlic, ginger, jalapeno and onion for chopping.
I used the food processor to save time. First, I put in the garlic, peeled ginger and jalapeno (all cut into chunks. Pulse a couple times until just chopped and then add in onion sections. Pulse a couple times.
- Trim chicken thighs of any visible fat and set aside. Measure spices into a small dish.
Heat a heavy-bottomed pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add oil and once hot, add onion and garlic mixture. Cook 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft.
Add in trimmed chicken thighs and cook for another 5 minutes or so until they begin to brown, flipping once.Now, add in the spice mixture and cook for 1 minute until fragrant, stirring to coat the chicken.
Pour in coconut milk and fish sauce and bring to a boil. Immediately cover, lower to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove chicken thighs to a cutting board and cube into 1" pieces, set aside. Meanwhile, turn up the light under the coconut milk sauce until it is boiling.
Slightly lower the light, keeping a nice strong simmer and reduce sauce for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add chicken back to sauce, remove from heat, toss in cilantro and stir.
Serve hot over rice or cauliflower rice and Enjoy!
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
MMMMMMMMMMMM……nice recipe Thanks and hats off to you
bye
jai
Thank you! Hope you love it!
Always looking for new twists for chicken since we eat it a lot!
I love all the spices and ingredients in this stew, it sounds delicious!
gah I love that you finished it with fresh cilantro. I bet this smells heavenly!
Amazing flavors!
This would be a new direction for me so I do not know if a fish substitute would work with this recipe. We only eat fish. Should I just move on?
You could add shrimp or a firm fish like cod, salmon or monkfish but adjust the cooking time!
Oh I loved this recipe. I’m new to the lifestyle however it didn’t take long to get bored, Maven you’re a gift, thank you. Recipes like this solved the problem. Made for a great lunch the next day as well.
Thank you so much Tami! So glad you loved it and thanks for taking the time to come over and let me know 🙂
This was dinner last night with the spiced coconut rice. The meal was outstanding! I served it with a side of steamed cauliflower. Thanks so much for this. It’s going to be one of my favorites.
Thank you so much Ann! So glad you enjoyed it and I appreciate you taking the time to let me know 🙂
good point as the sauce didn’t thicken as much as I thought. maybe because of the cauliflower. it was good anyway!
Excellent meal over rice! Seemed a little higher in points than we wanted per serving (no veggies Alyssa!?) so I just added some fresh cauliflower chunks (one head) at step 7 and it turned out great. I may try doubling everything, including the cauliflower, but except the chicken next time, and see how it turns out. (Oh and I didn’t have cardamom so I did half nutmeg and half garam masala. I’ll use cardamom next time).
Hi Scott! Glad you liked it!! For this one, I prefer the veggies on the side so the sauce stays nice and thick on the chicken but I love that added cauliflower to it. Hope you are doing well 🙂
When do you put in the fish sauce? I made this last night and decided to omit it because it was smelling so good. Turned out great and my picky 2 year old loved it!
Hi Jody! So glad you loved it and your toddler 🙂 I just updated the recipe – thanks for catching that. The fish sauce should go in at the same time as the coconut milk. Have a great day!
I could see myself mopping up the gravy with some rolls. Mmmmm… so comforting!
That sounds like a great idea!
Amazing dish! If you have a member of the family opposed or allergic to coconut milk, you can sub 1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth, add 1 heaping tsp raw sugar and omit the kosher salt. The dish does need some sweetness to it. I cook an Indian dish on a weekly basis, and my hubby says this is the best I’ve ever made 🙂 served with jasmine rice and a side of the Punjabi cabbage and chickpeas
I love the substitution ideas Sarah – so glad you both enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Omg,
This does look and sound delicious! I am a big fan of stews myself and would a big bowl of this with some hot basmati rice.
I was torn between rice and naan but went with rice as well 🙂
Great flavors, A! Love the combination of warm spices along with coconut milk.
Thank you 🙂 Hope you are having a better day today!
Sugar, I have always tried not to be a ‘food snob’ and now I am almost wondering 🙂 ! What a delightufl recipe I’ll most certainly try, but the word ‘stew’ is one SO boring – surely this is ‘xyz’ from ‘xyz’ 🙂 ! ? Indian regioanl cooking is such an exciting one!!!!
LOL! Well, after you make it, come back and tell me what you would name it. Anything with Stew always pleases the Mr. but I hear you!
I like Indian anything, and this looks wonderful – some great flavors here! I definitely have to try this. Really like the bowl in the picture (and the picture itself is OK – that ‘s a difficult subject). Anyway, thanks for this.
Yes, this is a good one – let me know what you think 🙂
This sounds (and looks!) amazing, Alyssa! We are such fans of stews, too, and I can’t wait to make this one. 🙂
It really was Hannah!
Stews are wonderful comfort foods but, unfortunately, they are hard to pretty up for a picture. Nature of the beast. That said, your stew looks very appetizing with its generous addition of cilantro right at the end. I am sure it tasted delicious!
True, true. I am sure I will be making this over and over again if my husband has any say 😉 so I will have plenty of opportunity for a new pic.
I love recipes like this – and it’s so true, ugly food is sometimes the most delicious!!
Me too Liz!
Ha! I have been known to eat leftovers for breakfast so I get it 🙂
I love the flavors going on in this dish! Indian is always a favorite over here and this would be a huge hit!
K is already asking when I am going to make it again!
How could this be modified to make in a crock pot or slow cooker instead of stove top? Would it be possible? Looks incredible but I get home so late that to start this when I get home we wouldn’t eat until 9 which is too late. Any ideas?
Hi Ellen,
I was thinking about the slow cooker for this but since you have to change the heat (up and down) a few times, I am not sure it would work so great. Also, it would be very difficult to get the sauce thick or reduced in the slow cooker. This reheats great, could you make it the day/night before and just reheat? Have a great day 🙂