Chicken Masala Recipe
This clean eating chicken masala is wonderfully aromatic and definitely tasty!
I’m fascinated by the Indian culture. The music, the clothing, the religions and most of all… the food!
It’s all just so different from the way I was raised. The culture is so rich, so vibrant and so full of color in so many ways. It’s almost hypnotizing.
If you read my last blog post on Clean Eating Naan, you know that Indian food is a relatively new experience for me. But it was love at first bite, and I will always find a way to include Indian food in my eating plan.
The first time I tried Indian food was at an Indian restaurant in Concord, California. Not the likeliest place to get good Indian food, but wow. It was GOOD!
The first thing I tried was butter chicken. I loved it, and found it hard to stray from this new found dish. But I eventually worked up the courage to try the chicken masala, and life was just never the same after that. I’ve actually had vivid dreams about enjoying a large bowl of chicken masala (No, I’m not completely normal. But we’ll keep that to ourselves, shall we?). It’s fantastic stuff.
I was a little worried that my recipe would not match up to the restaurant version. So I made sure to use plenty of spices in the hopes of at least coming close. And you know what? I did!!
More Healthy Indian Recipes
CHICKEN MASALA RECIPE:
Chicken Masala
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond milk (unsweetened)
- 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 tbsp. ground cumin
- 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp. curry powder
- 1 tbsp. garlic powder
- 2 tbsp. onion powder
- 1 tbsp. garam masala
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. ground coriander
- 2 tsp. ground ginger
- 30 0z. canned light coconut milk (unsweetened)
- 2 ¼ lb. chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
- 28 oz. canned diced tomatoes (no sugar added)
- 6 oz. tomato paste (no sugar added)
- fresh cilantro for garnish – optional
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients (except the cilantro) in a 5 quart crock pot and cook on high for 4-6 hours or until chicken is fully cooked. Stir occasionally during cooking process to be sure the chicken gets submerged in the liquids.
- NOTE: It will start out looking a bit thick and dry, but the liquids will release into the pot after about an hour or so of cooking. If this does not happen for some reason and you feel it will burn without more liquids, add 1/2 to 1 cup of clean, low-sodium chicken broth. But wait a full hour before doing so.
I’m making this now and it’s very liquidy! Also Tastes like it needs salt. Was salt omitted on purpose? What can I do to eliminate some liquid? It’s been cooking for 4 hours
Farah – If it’s really bad, you can transfer it to a pot once the meat is cooked and simmer the liquid down. Feel free to add salt.
Made this last night, and froze most of it because it’s just me.
It’s absolutely delightful and I can’t wait to have it again and again!
I’m really loving your blog!!
Fisch – Thanks so much! I’m so happy you enjoyed it! 🙂
Do you use red or yellow curry?
Janice – Yellow.
I am super excited to try this recipe this weekend! Just wondering, did you use chicken breasts? How much chicken did you use? Thank you!!!
Kris – It’s listed in the ingredients. 5 large chicken breasts. They were boneless and skinless. Enjoy!
Very nice meal….loved the blend of spices….at the end of a busy day, it was nice to dish it out of the slow cooker and enjoy a bit of comfort food! Thanks for all the good recipes!
Beth – My pleasure! 🙂
Can you find garam masala at any grocery store? I have yet to make an indian dish and this one with the naan bread is just calling my name!!! mmm
Brittanie – Yes, most mainstream stores carry it with all the other spices. But on occasion, I have also had to seek out and Indian food store. They typically have the best deals anyway. It might be best to call around before you make the trip. Hope you enjoy it!
You put it over rice or something else?
Tami – I put it over brown rice.
Is that rice under the chicken marsala? It looks devine, and I love India foods. The spices Ara out of this world.
Tami – Yes, it was brown rice. Enjoy!
I made this today. Something is wrong. You mentioned how it might be dry at first but mine is just swimming in 1 c. almond milk and two 15 oz cans of coconut milk. It has a huge amount of spices in it but is almost tasteless because of the volume of liquid. I’m pretty disappointed. If I were to make it again I would certainly leave out a lot of liquid.
Mary – That does seem odd. I know mine had some liquid, but not as much as you’re describing here. Is it possible something didn’t get measured correctly?