An easy, delicious curry that can be on the table in under 30 minutes, this Easy Chicken Rogan Josh is perfect for busy weeknights!
One of the most popular dishes on my blog is my Lamb Rogan Josh – it’s a deliciously tasty recipe, inspired by Rick Stein’s Rogan Josh from his lovely book ‘India’ (though, as you’d expect, my version is vastly simplified!).
My version of Lamb Rogan Josh is a great easy peasy recipe – throw onions, garlic, lamb and spices into a pot, then let the oven do all the work for an hour or two, while the cook relaxes… Then, almost by magic, out pops the most delicious, fragrant curry with meltingly tender pieces of lamb – totally my kind of cooking…buuut, with one significant drawback – what if you don’t have a couple of hours to spare before dinner?
That kind of laid back cooking is perfect for the weekend, or if you happen to have an hour or two to spare on a midweek evening – but what if it’s a totally hectic weeknight and you literally only have 30 minutes to make and serve up dinner, but you still want a tasty curry?
No, PUT THAT PHONE DOWN, you don’t have to order a takeaway – by using chicken instead of lamb, this easy Rogan Josh can be on the table in under half an hour!
Not only is this curry almost as quick as ordering from your local Indian restaurant (possibly quicker – don’t get me started on the takeaway we ordered recently that took over 2 hours to arrive, was stone cold and wasn’t even the right order!), but it is also even tastier (IMHO) and likely to be much healthier too – especially if you serve it with my Pilau Cauliflower Rice.
If cauliflower rice is not your thing, this curry would go equally well with my Easy Peasy Pilau Rice or, if you want to be super quick, just serve this Easy Chicken Rogan Josh with plain basmati rice or naan breads. And don’t forget all your favourite pickles and chutneys…I love a bit of mango chutney and lime pickle – what are your favourite extras to go with curry?
Don’t be alarmed by the number of spices in the recipe – once you’ve bought them, the hard part is over.
Once they’re in your kitchen, it’s really just a matter of tipping them into the pan – having a well-stocked spice cupboard is one of the secrets to my easy peasy cooking style – adding spices to a meal really is the simplest thing, yet creates incredible flavour!
With only a small amount of chilli, this curry is not hot at all (but feel free to add more chilli if you want it to be!), but it is has wonderful depth of flavour from all those lovely spices.
It’s a great chilli level for kids who don’t mind a little heat (mine are 7 and 8 and happily wolf this down) or wusses like me that can’t take anything above medium…but you can reduce the chilli down even further or leave it out if you or your family really don’t like hot food.
Apart from the speed of cooking time, the only difference between this quick and easy Chicken Rogan Josh and my Lamb Rogan Josh, is that with this one, I add a few fresh tomatoes in at the end for extra deliciousness.
They add such a lovely freshness and contrast to this curry, but if you are in a hurry and can’t be bothered with the extra chopping, just leave them out – there is still plenty of tomatoey goodness from the tinned tomatoes!
To go with this curry, I would suggest a Chilean Sauvignon Blanc or a Gewürztraminer from Alsace in France (always a good bet with chicken curry), alternatively a fruity rose from the South of France or Spain would work well here. If you prefer red, a South African Pinotage will also work well.
Of course (as I always say), my husband would recommend a beer to go with a curry. I’ve just asked him and he suggests an nice hoppy IPA should stand up to the spices in this Chicken Rogan Josh.
By the way, if you are wondering about the wine and beer recommendations, which I casually throw in from time to time…I used to work in the wine industry, mainly in buying and a bit in marketing, and I did all my wine qualifications (WSET level 4 if that means something to you!) which involved lots of very tricky exams in wine tasting – yeah, I know, tough gig!
My husband, who has never worked in the drinks industry, has one of the most freakishly naturally good palates I’ve ever known…and since I’m not much of a beer drinker these days, I always default to him on matters of beer!
If you like this recipe…
…you might also like:
Easy Chicken Rogan Josh
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 white onion sliced
- 5 cm stick cinnamon or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 cardamom pods bashed (optional)
- 4 cloves optional
- 3 garlic cloves grated finely or crushed
- 3 cm piece fresh ginger grated
- ½ to 1 teaspoon chilli flakes more if you like things hot!
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- 800 g chicken breast chopped into bitesize pieces
- 400 g tin chopped tomatoes
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- 4 medium plum tomatoes quartered (optional)
- 2-3 tablespoons of coriander leaves chopped, plus extra for garnish
- Plain or pilau rice to serve or Pilau Cauliflower Rice
Instructions
- Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a wide, deep saucepan and add the sliced onion, cinnamon stick, bashed cardamom pods and cloves. Cover with a lid and cook on a low heat for 5 minutes until the onions have softened but are not brown.
- Add in the crushed garlic, ginger, chilli flakes, cumin, coriander, turmeric and garam masala. Stir and fry uncovered on a low heat for 2 more minutes – add a splash of water if it starts to get dry.
- Add in the chopped chicken and stir to coat the chicken in the spices. Continue frying for a couple of minutes to allow the chicken to brown slightly.
- Add in the tinned tomatoes and salt. Stir and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and turn the heat down low. Cook for 10 minutes then remove the lid and cook for a further 10 minutes, until the sauce is thick and the chicken is cooked.
- Just before serving the curry, add the quartered plum tomatoes and coriander leaves to the curry and stir. Serve scattered with more coriander leaves and with some rice and a beer or a glass wine.
Notes
Need more curry inspiration? Check out my collection of Easy Peasy Curry Recipes
Love chicken? Check out my collection of Easy Chicken Dinners…
Pin Easy Chicken Rogan Josh for later
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Corina says
It looks totally delicious, as your recipes always do! And, I couldn’t agree more about how important having a well stocked spice cupboard is. Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Corina 🙂 Haha – I knew you’d agree with me about the spice cupboard. Actually at Christmas my husband and I had a clearout in our kitchen so I could turn one (smallish) cupboard into a dedicated spice cupboard…consequently I can now find what I am looking for at a glance…AND they don’t all fall on my head – always useful!! 😀 Eb x
Jenny Paulin says
I have to admit to never trying a rogan josh curry before – ever! However, a chicken one is much more appealing to me than a lamb one which I thought was always the meat used in a rogan josh!
your dish looks delicious – and of course so easy to make which I love. x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jenny, you are right about the fact that Rogan Josh is typically lamb (and I have a great lamb version on my site too!), but this one is quicker than my lamb one – so perfect for a super speedy midweek meal – and also great for people like yourself who are not so keen on lamb. Let me know what you think if you try it! Eb x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
Another great curry Eb. Looks tasty as always.
The wine-tasting must have been tough!!!! But I guess someone has to do it…. I didn’t know they have exams in swilling and spitting though! x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Kate 🙂 Yeah, all that wine tasting was seriously hard work…but you know, someone’s gotta do it!! 😀 Yep, there are plenty of exams to take in wine tasting…I think I did about 10 in total…it is a very odd experience to be sitting in an exam hall with 6 glasses of wine in front of you! Although probably even odder is the exam where you have a selection of spirits to taste 😀 Eb x
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
You always make all your recipes sound so delish and easy peasy- funny that! This dish would go down well in our house with my boys they do love a curry but i hardly ever make them as im not so keen a chilli wimp!. The youngest is back from uni after living for a couple of years in a flat share with an Indian girl so hes picked up a few curry making skills along the way.
It 25+ years since I did level 3 WSET exams (just for fun and recipe pairing) and I have forgotten so much I don’t feel able to do that but i do like your suggestions and often find myself thinking good choice to your recommendations. I also worked for several years at WSET doing lunches, refreshments, reception cover on an adhoc basis as well as bit of exam invigilating.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Jacqui – nice to know I’m staying ‘on brand’!!! 😀 How funny that you actually worked for WSET! I wonder if it was at the same time as I took my exams??? The WSET exams are fun aren’t they? I learnt so much…I’ve forgotten some of it, of course, but mainly the stuff I haven’t used much/at all since taking them (like all the stuff we had to learn about Chinese wine!!!!), but I was working in the wine trade at the time so I was totally immersed in it, so most of it has still stuck….plus I still have all my wonderful reference books to refer to when I can’t remember something! Eb x
jacqui says
I stopped working there about 2 years ago and was probably there for about 4 years . It was useful extra work i could fit around freelance work. In that time the the number of staff doubled and went through a lot of changes.
As for the curriculum when I did it about 75% about the old world wines 20% new world and 5% others so i don’t remember learning about chinese wine! It was fun I worked in magazines full time though so wasn’t as immersed in it as you.
Now my son has done level one wines and level one spirits.
Eb Gargano says
Oh no then, I did my WSET quite a while ago…I think from memory the WSET 3 was focused, as you say, on ‘normal wine’ but the WSET 4 pretty much covered everything…and for some reason that year everyone was rather overexcited about Chinese wine! I think it was tipped to be the next big thing that year, but it never quite happened!! I have to say I’ve barely thought of or heard about Chinese wine since the course…! Eb x
Monika Dabrowski says
This recipe sounds so lovely! I don’t use enough cardamom in my cooking though I absolutely love it. All the flavours sound super delicious together:)
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Monika…Cardamom is a fab spice, isn’t it? I just love the fragrance it brings to a curry or rice dish…I particularly like it alongside cinnamon and cloves…just such a delicious combination! Eb x
Colin Dale says
Great recipe. I see you add a piece of root ginger. Is this whole, chopped or grated? Can’t wait to try it. Colin
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Colin! And sorry for not being clear – the ginger should be grated. I’ve amended the recipe so it’s clear for everyone. I hope you enjoy it if you make it! Eb 🙂
Diane Delaney says
I made this curry a couple of days ago and it’s absolutely delicious, I was apprehensive as in the past most curry recipes I’ve tried have been abysmal. Not this curry, it’s easy to prepare and cook and tastes divine, I also made the Pilau rice recipe to go with it. I highly recommend this recipe, it’s so refreshing to find a recipe that exceeds expectations.
Eb Gargano says
Thank you so much for this lovely comment, Diane! I am delighted you enjoyed it so much. Eb 😀
Cynthia says
Hi again Eb
My kitchen is full of spicy aroma,s after preparing yet another Lamb Rogan Josh Curry for the family, this recipe is definitely a Winner with my family when Curry night is on the menu, it’s definitely a 5* Dish, I’ve been asked for the recipe by friends & Family Which I’ve passed on to them from your website easypeasyfoodie.com – I will continue to try out some of your other recipes, as they do seem Easy to prepare, and getting such great results must be the way to go for Lovers of good tasty dishes that have those lovely flavours. ……Cynthia
Eb Gargano says
Oh yay! I am so delighted to hear that. Thanks for letting me know! Eb 🙂
Rose says
Just made this for tea tonight. It was a really lovely ‘healthy’ curry. It’ll def be one of my go to, tomato based curry dishes. Was able to use fry-light as a olive oil substitute. As a follower of slimming world it was syn free to – so thank you. I was a bit worried, I was thinking 1 tin of tomatoes may not have been enough – it’ll be too dry etc. But it really wasn’t – the part which allowed it to cook for 10mins with the lid. Def gave it the moisture I was worrying about. It was healthy, enjoyable .. made a quick side of fat free natural yogurt & mint sauce. It’s gone down treat during these corona isolation times, so thank you x
Eb Gargano says
Yay! So pleased you liked it. And delighted to hear it was syn free. I don’t do Slimming World myself but I do have lots of friends who do, so I know a little bit about the rules. Great idea to serve it with a little yogurt and mint raita too! Eb 🙂
Pickled Love says
simple and healthy recipe
Eb Gargano says
Thanks! Eb 🙂
Richard says
My wife is a food professional. We have been married for 51 years and I am ashamed to say I have never cooked a meal but decided to try with a Chicken Rogan Josh during Covid lockdown. My wife isn’t really a fan of spicy food but we both loved your recipe and today I have repeated my effort, at her suggestion.
I am now motivated to give other ‘easy peasy’ recipes a try but they must be simple, one pan meals as tasty as this one. I have often ordered Rogan Josh as a takeaway from a very good local Indian restaurant. I think I prefer your recipe. Thank you.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thank you so much for this lovely comment, Richard! I am delighted you enjoyed making this recipe and that you both liked it so much. I’m especially happy to hear that you prefer my recipe to takeaway rogan josh 😀 Loads more easy one recipes on Easy Peasy Foodie – head here for the one pot collection >>> https://www.easypeasyfoodie.com/tag/one-pot/ and you might also like my easy one pan traybake collection too >>> https://www.easypeasyfoodie.com/tag/traybake/ Eb 🙂
Joanne Croose says
Easy to follow and deliciously tasty!!! Xx
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am delighted you liked it so much 😀
Laura says
The recipe was nicely spiced, I would of preferred it to be richer like the ones in the Indian restaurant
Eb Gargano says
Hi Laura, I am sorry you didn’t love this recipe. The best way to get that richness, is to slow cook this recipe. When designing this recipe, I had a choice… to make it quick and simple, or to make it longer and more complicated – but with more of that richness. For this Easy Chicken Rogan Josh, I chose quick and simple. But if you want a Chicken Rogan with more flavour and richness – more similar to those in an Indian restaurant, I recommend following this recipe for Slow Cooked Lamb Rogan https://www.easypeasyfoodie.com/lamb-rogan-josh/, but substituting the lamb with large chunks of chicken thigh. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂