This delicious easy chicken balti curry recipe takes just 15 minutes to prep and 20 minutes to cook.
Folks you're going to love this restaurant style chicken balti curry recipe.
It's so easy to make!
I've broken down how to make this balti chicken from scratch in a step-by-step guide below.
This is a tasty medium spiced curry in a thick rich red curry sauce.
The balti sauce is made from onion, garlic, ginger, tomatoes and a mixture of authentic Indian spices.
If you're on a weightloss diet, this chicken balti recipe is suitable and healthy as I use only a very minimum amount of oil in the cooking.
Although I've kept my balti curry recipe close to the original recipe, I have left out the peppers.
Feel free to add those in if you want to.
I just wanted the curry to be as simple as possible to make and not require too much cooking time or a huge list of ingredients!
This easy chicken balti curry recipe is suitable as a simple weeknight meal.
It's made all in one pot so it saves on the dishes.
If you're serving it to kids, you might want to remove or reduce the amount of chilli powder.
Otherwise I'm pretty sure you'll definitely want to add this balti chicken curry recipe to your list of favourite curries!
Jump to:
Why You'll Love This Easy Chicken Balti Curry
- Made from simple store cupboard ingredients.
- Healthy.
- Low cost.
- Very little prep involved.
- Only 15 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- Cooked all in the same pan.
- Completely customizable to your own taste.
Ingredients
- Vegetable Oil
- Onion
- Garlic And Ginger Paste
- Mild Chilli Powder
- Turmeric
- Ground Cumin
- Ground Coriander
- Cinnamon
- Tomato Puree
- Tinned Chopped Tomatoes
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
- Salt And Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Freshly Chopped Coriander (optional garnish)
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Detailed instructions are in the recipe card below. But here is a quick step by step guide of how to make this easy chicken balti curry recipe:
Step 1
- Heat the oil in large pan. Sauté the onion until softened.
Step 2
- Stir in the garlic and ginger paste and the spices.
Step 3
- Stir in the tomato puree and tinned tomatoes. Simmer.
Step 4
- Blitz the tomato onion spice mixture to a sauce consistency. Return to pan. Season to taste. Add water if too thick.
Step 5
- Add the chicken. Cook chicken in the sauce until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thickened.
Step 6
- Serve with plain basmati rice, naan bread or Indian flatbreads, garnished with the chopped coriander.
Substitutions
- Vegetable Oil - you can use olive oil instead. I prefer vegetable oil for curries.
- Garlic And Ginger Paste - I use shop bought ginger and garlic paste to save time chopping. You could always use 2 crushed garlic cloves and a teaspoon of grated fresh ginger instead though.
- Tomato Puree - you can use tomato paste.
- Tinned Chopped Tomatoes - you can substitute with blended freshly peeled tomotoes.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts - you can use chicken thighs.
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FAQ's
What Is Chicken Balti?
Chicken balti is a popular curry originating in Great Britain. It's chicken cooked in a rich sauce made of a blend of authentic Indian spices.
How Many Calories Are In A Chicken Balti Curry?
There are 241 calories in this chicken balti curry. Excluding any rice or breads.
What To Serve With Balti Curry?
Rice or Indian flatbreads like Naan breads are great accompaniments. Popadoms go well too.
How To Store Balti Curry?
Chicken balti curry can be stored in the fridge for 2 - 3 days maximum. You can store the actual sauce prior to cooking the chicken for longer though, 3 - 4 days.
How To Freeze Balti Chicken Curry?
Portion the curry and transfer to an airtight container to freeze.
How To Reheat This Curry?
Allow curry to thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat it on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Other Popular Homemade Chicken Curry Recipes You Might Also Like
📋 Easy Chicken Balti Curry Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- 1 Large Onion diced.
- 2 tablespoon Garlic and Ginger Paste
- 1 teaspoon Mild Chilli Powder
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon tomato puree
- 400 g tin chopped tomatoes.
- 700 g Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts cut into bite size chunks.
- Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- 1 tablespoon Freshly Chopped Coriander optional for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oil. Sauté the onion over a medium heat until softened. About 5 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and ginger paste, chilli powder, turmeric, ground cumin, ground coriander and cinnamon for about 30 seconds to release the flavours.
- Stir in the tomato puree and tin of chopped tomatoes and bring to the boil then turn down to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Blitz the tomato mixture to a sauce consistency in a blender or use a stick blender. Return to pan. Season to taste and add water if too thick.
- Add in the chicken and cook, simmering gently for about 15 minutes until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thickened.
- Season to taste and serve with rice and/or garlic naan bread topped with the chopped coriander.
Nutrition
Nutrition Label
Nutritional information provided below is calculated using paid for online tools and the exact ingredients and quantities used above.
Rate The Recipe
If you’ve made this easy chicken balti curry recipe, or any other recipes on Neil's Healthy Meals, then please let me know.
I’d love to hear what you think of my recipe in the comments below and please do rate my recipe 5* if you like it! 🙂
angiesrecipes
Such a beautiful and delicious curry! I love that you made the curry gravy from the scratch instead of curry powder mix. An excellent meal!
Neil
Thank you Angie. I've never really liked those curries made from gravy and usually always make mine from scratch.
Charlie DeSando
Neil, very nice looking dish, especially with eth naan to soak up the juices
Neil
Thanks Charlie. Yes, you can't beat a curry without a good naan can you?
sherry
some great flavours here. Balti chicken is not really a thing here in australia but it sounds very tasty.
Neil
Yeah it's more an English curry. But as you say it's still very tasty!
Raymund | angsarap.net
Thank you for sharing this easy chicken balti curry recipe! Your step-by-step guide makes it seem so simple and easy, and the fact that it's a one-pot meal is a huge plus. I appreciate that you've made it suitable for those on a weightloss diet by using a minimum amount of oil. I'll definitely be adding this recipe to my list of favorites and can't wait to give it a try. Thanks again for sharing!
Neil
Thanks Raymund! You're welcome. This really is a great curry, nice and easy too. Hope you get a chance to make it!
Michelle
Great step by step photos! Looks like a delicious and easy curry to make on a weeknight. My family loves curry, will be making this one soon!
Neil
Glad you like the step by step photos Michelle. I've a lot of work on adding similar step by step photographs to a lot of my older recipes. So it's good that someone appreciates them. Thank you. And hope you enjoy the curry!
David @ Spiced
I do love a good red curry, and this one sounds fantastic, Neil! I'm pretty sure I have all of those ingredients on hand right now, too. This sounds like a great weeknight meal...nice and easy, but with great flavor. Oh, and that naan? It's a requirement for a good curry dish!
Neil
Thanks David. Yes, I agree about the naan. It's not a curry unless it's got naan with it!
Jeff the Chef
I could eat naan every day for the rest of my life. Especially with a red curry! You make such interesting dishes! Dinner at your house must be constantly amazing.
Neil
I try and make something different for dinner every night of the week Jeff. It's not always possible what with work too. But my freezer is filled with lots of bulk meals! Thank you!
Mimi Rippee
This is so beautiful. I’d want lots of naan to go with this curry!
Neil
Aw thanks Mimi. Yeah, you definitely need lots of naan to go with this curry! 🙂
Frank | Memorie di Angelina
What a lovely dish, Neil. We all need more of these tasty but easy to prepare dishes in our lives.
Neil
Thanks Frank! These are the kind of weekday dishes I like. Less ingredients and less cooking. At the weekend though, I'll do recipes with longer lists and more time required. 🙂
2pots2cook
Perfect dish to feed a crowd for this Friday gathering. Must check if enough beer in the fridge ! 🙂 Thnak you!
Neil
Hope you enjoy it. And yes I recommend a beer or two to go with it! Ha ha.