Recipes that require more than one pan – who has time for that? Apparently, not me. This week I went searching for a quick chicken curry recipe and found all kind of ridiculousness – multiple pans required, oven-baked, using ONLY curry and no other spices….am I being too picky here? I just want some clean, delicious, curry, and I need to be able to accomplish it while two little boys hang off my legs screaming. No kids? Just forget that last part.
If you come home from work, pour a leisurely glass of wine, and spend a couple of hours cooking/enjoying an elaborate dinner, then enjoy that. However, if you’re like the 99.9% of us who have something else that we need to be doing, then here you go.
Oh yeah, let’s talk about these potatoes really quick. Are we all over the whole white potato thing yet? Most paleo curry recipes will substitute sweet potatoes for white. You can do that if you want, but there’s really no reason to avoid small amounts of white potatoes unless you avoid nightshades or have insulin resistance. They are a great source of prebiotics, which means they feed the “good bacteria” in your gut.
Ok, one more thing and I’ll stop. Have you discovered creamed coconut yet? You reconstitute it with water and it tastes WAY better than canned coconut milk in my opinion. Also, you don’t have to worry about the can lining and extra yucky ingredients usually found in canned coconut milk. I highly recommend creamed coconut if you can find it, but feel free to use a canned coconut milk (check that ingredient label) instead. Enjoy!
One-Pan Paleo Chicken Curry
Hands-On time: 30 minutes / Total time: 60-70 minutes / Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon duck fat (or coconut oil)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-2” pieces
- Sea salt and black pepper
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 ½ teaspoon fish sauce (may omit if desired)
- 2 cups reconstituted creamed coconut OR use 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- 2 cups chopped cabbage
- 2 ½ cups carrot slices (~5 medium carrots)
- 2 cups potato pieces (~5-6 baby potatoes) – may sub sweet potato if desired
- 1 tablespoon Unsweetened coconut flakes (optional garnish)
Instructions:
- Melt the duck fat or coconut oil over medium heat in a large container such as a Dutch oven or big fry pan.
- Add the onion and ginger, and stir fry until onion is translucent.
- Add the garlic and chicken pieces to the pan. Season with salt and pepper.
- Stir fry until chicken is nearly fully cooked, then add the four spices. Stir fry 10-20 seconds until fragrant (see below image).
- Add the fish sauce, coconut milk, cabbage, carrots, and potatoes (see below image). Adjust heat to simmer while loosely covered (leave crack to allow some steam to escape. Simmer around 30 minutes, until veggies are fully cooked, stirring occasionally.
- Serve over choice of cauliflower rice or white rice (if tolerated). Garnish with unsweetened coconut flakes. Enjoy!