Simple Chicken Curry with Saffron Rice – Fit Recipe

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A good easy-to-make chicken curry is something everyone should have in their repertoire. Easy, healthy and much better than the local takeaway.

Feel free to adjust the spices as you see fit. The great thing about curries is that you can really tailor them to your own taste. Add some chilli for a bit of kick, perhaps some garam masala - it's totally up to you.

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I love chicken thighs in curries and stews. For me, they're just so much tastier and juicier than the standard breast meat. Feel free though to use chicken breasts if that's what you prefer - just chop them up into bite-sized chunks before browning them in the pan.

The saffron rice makes the dish feel a little bit more 'special' and authentic. A real treat, especially if you're tempted to visit the local takeaway or click the UberEATS app.

You could, of course, substitute the saffron rice for brown rice and make the dish even healthier. Brown rice has extra micronutrients and extra fibre - check out the comparison between brown and white rice here. If you are using brown rice though, you'll need to add a bit more water - an extra cup or so should do it.

TOP TIP - the rice can also be made in a rice cooker if you have one. Prepare the saffron as in the main recipe and then follow the instructions for your rice cooker.

One serving is 2 chicken thighs and a quarter of the cooked rice.

Simple Chicken Curry Ingredients

For the chicken:

8 skinless chicken thigh fillets

Tbsp vegetable oil

1 large onion, diced

Tbsp ginger, minced

5 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp black pepper

3 large tomatoes, chopped

1½ tsp turmeric

For the rice:

¼ cup boiling water

Pinch saffron

1 cup basmati rice

Tsp coconut oil

½ tsp onion powder

¼ tsp salt

1¾ cups vegetable stock

Method

Heat the oil in a pan, season the chicken thighs and fry on both sides until golden brown. Remove from the pan and set aside
In the same pan, fry the onion, garlic & ginger for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring often.
Add the pepper, turmeric, chopped tomatoes along with ¼ cup water and bring to the boil
Return the chicken to the pan and simmer for around 30-40 minutes until the meat is tender
Meanwhile, cook the rice. Brew the saffron in the boiling water for 5 minutes.
In a medium pot, combine the saffron, water, rice and all the other ingredients
Cover with a lid, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer for 15 minutes
Remove from the heat and allow to sit, covered, for 10 minutes before serving with 2 chicken thighs and some sauce.

Serves 4

Simple Chicken Curry Macros

(per serving)

484 kcal	grams	% of calories
Protein	37.9	32%
Carbohydrate	48.8	41%
Fat	14.5	27%

Simple Chicken Curry Macros Chart MyFitnessPal Barcode

Variations

Adjust the mix and blend of spices as you see fit - there's no right or wrong. Coriander, cumin, garam masala, even curry powder. You won't affect the macros much but the flavour will be totally different.

Feel free to add some fresh chilli or some coriander towards the end of cooking for an extra burst of flavour and spice.

Wholegrain brown rice will improve the dish's nutrition even more but every now and again I like a special treat. This saffron version ticks that box for me.

Download PDF Copy

Be sure to leave me a comment below letting me know how you got on with the simple chicken curry recipe. And if you want a printable PDF version, just click the orange button above or click here.

If you're keen on tracking your macros - the PDF has MyFitnessPal barcode for easy logging and tracking.

Happy cooking!

Paul Stokes Perth Personal Trainer Sports Nutritionist Group Fitness Instructor Massage Therapist

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