Sri Lankan Chicken Curry with step by step pictures. Kukul Mas curry is a popular recipe around the world. This dish is served with rice or roti.
Sri Lankan Chicken Curry
I once came across this recipe through a cooking show, immediately i wanted to try it. Within a couple of days i bought all the stuff and got into action. I should tell you the end result was amazing and it tasted so yummy. We enjoyed this curry with idiappam and it was so good.I was waiting to post this recipe for so long. It was sitting in my drafts for months. Finally the day has arrived.
This is so simple to make, it involves lots of spice powders and masalas. If you can find lemon grass add that too, it gives a nice flavour to it. But i could't find it so i didn't add it. I hope you will try it and let me know what you think.
Table of Contents
About this Recipe
Kukul mas is a Colombo-style traditional Sri Lankan chicken curry. This creamy and lightly spiced curry is typically made with diced chicken breast, onions, ginger, garlic, turmeric, garam masala, chilli powder, coconut milk, tomatoes, oil, and salt.
Chicken curry, also known as curry chicken, is a dish from the Indian subcontinent. It is widespread in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, the United Kingdom, and the Caribbean.
A typical Indian subcontinent curry consists of chicken stewed in an onion-and- tomato-based sauce flavoured with ginger, garlic, tomato puree, chilli peppers, and a variety of spices, which may include turmeric, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and cardamom. Outside of South Asia, chicken curry is frequently made with curry powder, a pre-made spice mixture.
What is the difference between Indian curry and Sri Lankan curry?
Sri Lankan curries are hotter than Indian curries. Sri Lankan food is typically spicier than Indian food due to the heavy use of hot chilies in Sri Lankan dishes. Despite the fact that Indian food is also known for being spicy, South Indian food is less spicy than that of the neighbouring island of Sri Lanka.
Ingredients for Sri Lankan Chicken Curry
Coconut Milk:
Coconut milk is extremely versatile, and it can be used in both sweet and savoury dishes. Chongchitnant explains that in largely dairy-free Thai cuisine, its used to add creaminess and fat to a wide range of dishes, from sauces and dressings to curries and stews to puddings and dessert soups.
Tomatoes:
Tomato flavour is frequently described as sweet, tart, tangy, or well- balanced. Tomato flavour is also known as classic tomato flavour or old-fashioned tomato flavour in some cases. Some tomatoes are described as having a mild or bland flavour.
Vinegar:
Vinegars acidity or sourness enhances the flavour of food and adds balance to a rich dish. Salad dressings, marinades, sauces, mayonnaise, and ketchup are all examples of where it can be found. Vinegar has the ability to alter the texture of foods.
Kukul Mas Curry Steps
Step 1:
Heat ghee in a deep pot. Add in cardamom, cinnamon, fenugreek and fry for a min. Add in curry leaves and let them splutter. In goes onions and saute them for few minutes till they turn translucent. Add in ginger, garlic, salt and give a good stir. Now add in all the spice powders starting from chilli to fennel and give a good mix.
Step 2:
Add in crushed tomatoes and cook for 5 mins till oil separates from it. In goes chicken and let it get coated in all the masala. Add in pandan leaf, vinegar and mix well. Cover with a lid and simmer the flame. let it cook for 40 to 45 mins till it is cooked completely.
Step 3:
Now add in coconut milk and mix well. Simmer for a couple of mins. Serve with rice or anything of your choice.
📖 Recipe Card
Sri Lankan Chicken Curry Recipe | Kukul Mas Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- Ghee / Clarified Butter - 3 tblspn
- Cardamom pods -4
- Fenugreek Seeds / Vendayam - 1 tsp
- Cinnamon Stick - 1 small one
- Curry leaves - 1 spring
- Onion - 5 medium size chopped finely
- Ginger - 2 tblspn minced
- Garlic - 2 tblspn minced
- Salt to taste
- Chilli Powder - 2 tsp
- Coriander powder / Malli podi - 1 tblspn
- Turmeric powder / Manjal podi - 1 tsp
- Garam Masala Powder - 2 tsp
- Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
- Fennel Powder / Saunf Powder / Sombu Powder - 1 tsp
- Tomato - 4 medium size chopped finely
- Chicken - 1 kg cut into pieces
- Pandan leaf - 1
- Vinegar - 2 tblspn
- Thick Coconut Milk - 1 cup / 250 ml
Instructions
- Heat ghee in a deep pot. Add in cardamom, cinnamon, fenugreek and fry for a min.
- Add in curry leaves and let them splutter.
- Add in onions and saute them for few minutes till they turn translucent.
- Add in ginger, garlic, salt and give a good stir.
- Now add in all the spice powders starting from chilli to fennel and give a good mix.
- Add in crushed tomatoes and cook for 5 mins till oil separates from it.
- Add in chicken and let it get coated in all the masala.
- Add in pandan leaf, vinegar and mix well.
- Cover with a lid and simmer the flame. let it cook for 40 to 45 mins till it is cooked completely.
- Now add in coconut milk and mix well. Simmer for a couple of mins.
- Serve with rice or anything of your choice.
If you have any questions not covered in this post and if you need help, leave me a comment or mail me @[email protected] and I’ll help as soon as I can.
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Sri Lankan Chicken Curry Recipe with Step by Step Pictures
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| Take all your ingredients |
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| Heat ghee |
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| Add in tempering items |
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| curry leaves |
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| Add in onions and mix well |
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| Add in ginger |
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| garlic |
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| salt.. |
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| Saute till golden |
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| Add in spice powders |
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| And some more spice powder |
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| Mix well |
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| Add in tomatoes |
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| Mix well |
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| Add in chicken pieces |
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| And coat well with the masala |
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| Add in pandan leaf |
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| Add in vinegar.. |
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| Mix well |
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| Cover and Simmer |
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| Till chicken is cooked |
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| Add in coconut milk |
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| Mix well |
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| Serve |
Rafeeda AR
this looks really hot... 🙂
Priya Suresh
Beautiful and super flavourful chicken curry.
Food, Fun and Life in the Charente
This looks fantastic, will make it over the weekend, think I have most of the ingredients for a change. Thanks. Have a good day, Diane
Archana
tried this for dinner tonight... it smells and tastes awsome... 🙂 thanks a lottt.. love your recipes.. 🙂
suji
hi aarthi,
pls can you tell me the name of the vessel you are using
Anonymous
Love Sri Lankan dishes, you are so amazing to guide newbie like me, step by step with photo and all, you take great effect, love all recipes by you
Have a blessed day=)
A Singaporean fan=))
Anonymous
what iş pandan leaf ? pl.help .
Anonymous
am a sri lankan myself and love this curry when my mother used to make it for our birthdays- of course then its more richer with yoghurt etc.! wonderful website aarthi!!i have already tried sooo many recipes from your site- was never a flop!!keep up the good work!! (btw when you say 1 cup in recipes how many grams does this amount to?- wld be great if you could help me out here...!! Thank you)
Aarthi
@Anonymous Pandan leaf is also called as screw pine leaf, which we use in briyanis to give nice aroma..
Aarthi
@AnonymousCup to gram measurements vary for each ingredients. In this recipe, 1 cup of coconut milk refers to 250 ml or grams of milk.
Anonymous
Hi Aarthi, I am Shirley and i am from Melaka, Malaysia, really love your blog. And i hv tried a few of your recipes and like what some hv said,,they never fail.Thank you so much for sharing these wonderful recipes,I especially love the step by step, which you have taken so much time to do..By the way one of the recipes which i hv tried and succeded was the Thaigai Paal Apam,,my mum is a good cook herself but has somehow lost the touch,and when i follow her recipe it does not turn our to be crisp and the sides and there are no honeycomb formation in the middle, but when i tried your recipe,, Wow it was fabulous...Thanks Aarthi,,,will not stop peeping as to what new recipes you have..
mukta
Hi it looks yummy but can u tell me where can i buy this pundan leaf in india?? M in USA now so if u know then let me know if i can buy it here?? If i dont get is there any substitute??
I tried ur tandoori chicken recipe with soya sauce and it came out really yummy. I tried chicken first time and i loved it!! Thank you. I will be trying all your recipes now..
Mukta Amit
Aarthi
@muktaYou can buy that it any indian market in us.In india you can buy it in every supermarket.
Anonymous
What chilli powder you are using. .the colour is good.
Aarthi
@AnonymousI used kashmiri chilli powder
Anonymous
may I use fresh cream instead of coconut milk
Aarthi
@AnonymousYou can use, but coconut milk gives the real flavour.
Anonymous
Hi, can v use gg paste instead of using chopped ones.
Aarthi
@Anonymousyes u can add ginger garlic paste
Anonymous
I have lemongrass. Can u tell at which step can I add it?
Anonymous
I have lemongrass, can you say when I add it to the curry?
Aarthi
@AnonymousU can add it after tomatoes
Priya Gerald
Hai Arthi,
Tried it today for lunch. And it tasted sooo Good.
Olive
Thank you for sharing this Sri Lankan dish...I was in Sri Lanka last year and love the food there. I shall cook this chicken dish soon , it looks super yummy !
Shilpi B
Hi Aarthi! I have been following your very interesting posts. I prepared the Sri Lankan chicken curry as per your recipe. It turned out very tasty .
Unknown
I dont get pandan leaves..wer do u get them? Is there any substitute
Sohrab Bharucha
Dear Ma'am,
I'm a once a year cook, and my wife requested for chicken and roti, she being an awesome cook, I did not want comparisons, so I took the cowards way out and made this. Ma'am it turned out amazing, we had it with onion/chilli coconut rotis, and my family went carzy over it. (I'm sure some of it was just to see me happy), but I too loved it. Since I did not know what pandan leaves were I replaced it with lemongrass, and i added some lemon to it as well.
Thank you ma'am,
Sandra
I can't thank you enough, your recipes always turn out to be amazing! This one is no exception.