This Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry ticks all the boxes: easy, quick, healthy, budget-friendly and utterly delicious! It’s the perfect midweek meal and a great option for filling the freezer too.
Unicorn recipes
I may not believe in unicorns, but I do believe in unicorn recipes! To me unicorn recipes are recipes which check these 5 boxes:
- Easy
- Quick
- Healthy
- Budget-friendly
- Delicious
Hit these 5, and you know you are onto a winner!
If you’ve been round here for a while, you’ll know that Easy Peasy Foodie is full of unicorn recipes… well I’d like to introduce me to my latest one… my Easy Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry!
A quick and easy chicken curry
This delicious chicken curry is so easy to make… Simply fry some onions and spices, add lentils and coconut milk and, finally, add the chicken and diced peppers, then simmer until the chicken and lentils are fully cooked. It’s all done in just 30 minutes making it perfect for busy weeknights.
And because this recipe uses skinless, boneless chicken thighs, you don’t need to worry about overcooking your chicken… in fact, this recipe is pretty much foolproof!
Packed full of goodness and flavour
This easy chicken curry is not only quick and easy, it’s also packed full of goodness! It features healthy spices like turmeric, ginger and chilli… skinless, boneless chicken thighs which contain lots of protein, vitamins and minerals… 3 of your 5 a day (because lentils count!)… lots of fibre from those lovely lentils…. and using light coconut milk reduces the calorie count and saturated fat… Which all means this Easy Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry is so much healthier that a ready meal or takeaway curry!
But this fab chicken and lentil curry is not only packed full of goodness, it’s also packed full of favour from all those wonderful spices, flavoursome chicken thigh meat, earthy lentils and just a touch of nutty sweetness from the coconut milk.
Kind on your budget
This recipe is also kind on your budget – chicken thighs are so much cheaper than chicken breast meat and packing this curry with budget friendly veg and lentils not only makes this dish more nutritious, it also helps to stretch this dish a little further – filling more mouths for less!
Perfect for filling the freezer!
This recipe is such a great one for filling the freezer! Making double is not much more effort than making a single quantity of this recipe… you can then pop what you don’t need right now into the freezer and you have a delicious, nutritious homemade chicken curry in your freezer… which should stop you reaching for the takeaway menu next time you are tempted!
What to eat with Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry?
If you want to keep this super healthy, I recommend serving this curry with either brown basmati rice or plain cauliflower rice. Or you could try my Pilau Cauliflower Rice.
Otherwise, you can serve this with white basmati rice, regular pilau rice and / or naans and all your favourite chutneys / pickles / sides.
What to drink with Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry?
This is quite a fragrant chicken curry, so works well with aromatic white wines, such as Riesling, Gewurtztraminer, Pinot Gris or Sauvignon Blanc.
Red wine would not be a great match here, but this easy chicken curry would also go wonderfully with a fruity rosé from somewhere like Spain, Portugal or Chile.
Make it your own
This easy peasy curry is very easy to adapt to your own personal preferences / what you have in your kitchen right now. Here are some ideas…
- Use diced chicken breast instead of chicken thigh
- Swap the chicken for prawns or diced white fish. (Add these 5 minutes before the end as they won’t take so long to cook.)
- Make it veggie by using Quorn pieces or canned chickpeas instead of the chicken
- Try aubergine, cauliflower or spinach instead of the peppers
- Use canned chickpeas or green lentils instead of the red lentils
- Not a fan of coconut milk? Use passata instead!
Can you reheat leftover chicken curry?
Absolutely! And this is one of those recipes that actually tastes BETTER the next day. Put any leftover chicken curry in a plastic lidded container and place it in the fridge, where it will keep for up to 3 days.
To reheat, place the curry in a saucepan with a splash of water and bring to the boil. Reduce and simmer for 5-10 minutes, or until the curry is piping hot all the way through.
Can you freeze leftover chicken curry?
Yes! This curry freezes very well. Simply put any leftover chicken curry in a plastic lidded container and place it in the freezer, where it will keep for up to 3 months.
Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat as above.
If you like this recipe…
…you might also like:
Easy Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion sliced
- 3 cloves garlic grated or crushed
- 2 cm ginger grated
- 1 teaspoon chilli flakes
- 3 teaspoons garam masala
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs diced (roughly 500g / 1lb total weight)
- 100 g red lentils
- 400 ml light coconut milk (you can, of course, use full fat coconut milk if you prefer)
- 1 red pepper diced
- 1 green pepper diced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Juice of 1 lime (optional)
- 15 g fresh coriander (cilantro) roughly chopped (plus extra for garnish)
To serve:
- Your choice of white rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice and / or naans to serve
- All your favourite pickles / chutneys / side dishes
Instructions
- Place the oil and sliced onion in a wide, deep pan and fry gently with the lid on for 3-5 minutes until the onion is softened, but not brown. Stir occasionally.
- Add the garlic, ginger, chilli, garam masala and turmeric and fry for 1 more minute over a gentle heat, with the lid off. Stir occasionally and, if the pan starts to get a little dry, add a small splash of water.
- Add the red lentils and coconut milk, followed by the diced chicken and peppers, plus salt and pepper to taste.
- Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes, or until the lentils are soft and the chicken is cooked through. (See Note 1) Stir occasionally and add a splash of water if the curry starts sticking to the pan, before it is fully cooked.
- Finally stir through the lime juice and fresh coriander, and serve with your choice of rice / cauliflower rice / naans and all your favourite sides.
Video
Notes
- The brand of lentils I use take 20 minutes to cook, but double check the lentils you buy and adjust the cooking time accordingly, if necessary.
- Suitable for freezing.
- Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
Pin Easy Chicken, Red Lentil and Coconut Curry for later
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Kate - Gluten Free Alchemist says
This looks delicious Eb. I’m a huge fan of a speedy, easy chicken curry… especially with coconut. Pinning for later xx
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Kate! Eb 🙂
Corina Blum says
It sounds delicious! As you know we love easy chicken curries in our house and this one would definitely be popular!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Corina! Let me know if you try it 😀
Lesley says
I love curry and this chicken and lentil curry looks ideal, quick to cook making it an ideal mid week dinner dish.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Lesley!
Fiona says
I made the curry with no chicken, then I let it cool completely. I added raw prawns and a couple of pieces of random white fish that were lurking in the freezer and then heated it up. According to my family it was the best curry ever!! It was so tasty plus I managed to sneak in extra vegetables ( courgettes and spinach). Definitely worth doing. 😋
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so pleased to hear that. I love your adaptations 😀
Tim says
This is the first recipe of yours that i have tried and it was so good and full of flavor and tasted even better the following day. The cooking instruction were clear and made each step easy to follow. Will definitely make this again and looking forward to trying more of your recipes
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay! I am so pleased to hear that 😀 Thanks for taking the time to leave such a lovely review! Eb 🙂
Catherine says
I gave a portion of this to a friend who has been under the weather and she said it has really given her a boost, thanks so much for the great recipe. Definitely a new favourite!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, I am so delighted to hear that. Thanks for taking the time to leave such a lovely review…and especially for the 5 stars! Eb 🙂
Julia Dunlop says
Another really tasty and easy curry, thanks. I added two spoonfuls of plain yoghurt as it was a bit spicy for my son. Also added courgette and spinach the second time I made it – really good!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay! I am so pleased to hear that 😀 Love the sound of your adaptations. Thanks for taking the time to leave such a lovely review! Eb 🙂
Beth Sachs says
This chicken and lentil curry looks delicious. Great that it’s healthy too!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Beth!
Becky says
Just made this for my family and everyone loved it 🙂 I didn’t have any lentils, but was very tasty without them and so easy to make. Will be adding it to my list of family meal options. Thank you
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so pleased to hear that. Thanks for this lovely review! Eb 🙂
Kate says
Hi there, was just wondering, you say you can pop this in the microwave from frozen. Is that straight from the freezer, or left to defrost? Also, if this is direct from the freezer, how long do you think it would take to cook?
Eb Gargano says
Hi Kate, I always recommend defrosting overnight in the fridge before reheating. For best results, I actually recommend reheating this curry in a saucepan (which is the way I always do it). Simply, place the curry in a saucepan with a splash of water and bring to the boil. Reduce and simmer for 5-10 minutes, or until the curry is piping hot all the way through. If you prefer, you can reheat the defrosted curry in the microwave until piping hot all the way through. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Dawn says
I made this with chicken breasts instead of thighs and added ground cumin and coriander, as well as cherry tomatoes. I did find it a little bland (which is why I added the extra spices) so next time I will be adding fresh chilli and/or more chilli flakes. I also added some fish sauce with the lime and some mint with the coriander, just because it was the the fridge so why not. I made it today (Saturday) for Monday as a nice winter warmer to come home and reheat after work, and having tasted it I’m looking forward to it! Thank you.
Eb Gargano says
Good to hear you liked the recipe! Eb 🙂
Ray says
Made this today and it was amazing. My husband also loved the dish. I added some garlic powder and added double the amount of chilli flakes for more flavor. Thanks for the recipe.
Eb Gargano says
Great to hear! Thank you for such a lovely review 😀
Pamela McGuire says
I have made this from scratch and I’m wondering why mine is very liquidity. What can I add to thicken it up
Eb Gargano says
Sorry to hear that. Usually the reason for this curry being too liquid is that you have not boiled off enough of the liquid… this could be because you had it on a slightly lower temperature to simmer, you did not simmer it for long enough (I assume it’s probably not that, or you would have said), or a different shaped saucepan (less surface area = less evaporation). In the future, the best remedy to thicken it is simply to simmer it at a higher temperature or in a wider saucepan (or for longer!). Right now (if you have any left), the best remedy is to simmer it until the liquid has reduced / the sauce has thickened. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Ileana Czerw says
Can I use chicken thighs with bones
Eb Gargano says
Do you mean you will cut the chicken off the bones first and then cook as per this recipe? In which case, simply follow the recipe as written. I only suggest using boneless chicken thighs to make the prep easier. Or do you mean you want to cook whole chicken thighs with the bones still in? In which case I recommend cooking this for a little longer, since the pieces of chicken will be much larger. Probably about 35-40 minutes should do it. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Jodi says
Planning to try to veganize this by swapping firm tofu and cauliflower in place of the chicken. Looks delicious!
Eb Gargano says
Sounds like a great idea! Let me know how you get on 😀
Al says
How would I make this but in an instant pot?
Eb Gargano says
I’m afraid I don’t own an instant pot and so I can’t advise how to adapt this for an instant pot, sorry. Though I would say that, given this is such a quick recipe, I’m not sure there would be a huge amount of benefit to making this curry in an instant pot compared to the conventional way described in the recipe.
Jennifer says
Made with chicken, sliced onion and bell peppers, and also added boiled baby carrots. Very delicious!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, that’s so great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review… and especially the 5* rating! 😀
Linda says
I’ve added mushrooms and the last 10mins adding already cooked chicken to use it up
Eb Gargano says
Sounds great – love the sound of your adaptations!
Petia N says
I wish I could leave a photo. This is the first time I did this recipe and it turned out so great. I didn’t have ginger, and instead of “3 teaspoons garam masala” I put 2 tsps and 1 tsp of Curry. I ended up adding extra milk and a bit of water because I wasn’t sure if the lentils would be done, but it worked out great. Oh, I also substituted coconut milk for regular milk. This is amazing.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay – that’s so great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review 😀
Beth says
Hi EB,
I want to try this recipe, but I don’t see ‘Curry’ in the list of ingredients. I’m not an experienced cook, so am concerned I am misunderstanding something. Can you help me understand why there is no curry in the recipe?
With thanks 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Hi Beth, Curry is a dish rather than an ingredient. Curry is a dish of protein and/or vegetables in a spiced sauce, often served over rice. So, in this example, the whole thing is curry. I think you might be thinking of ‘curry powder’, which is a blend of spices designed to be used in a curry. But you don’t have to use curry powder in a curry. Curry powder a shortcut, but traditionally curries are made from a blend of spices, which is exactly what I have done in this recipe. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂