Tamilnadu style kozhi kari kuzhambu for idli and dosa. Recipe for Madras Chicken Curry with coconut. Easy and simple recipe with step by step pictures.
Madras Chicken Curry / Tamilnadu style Madras Kari Kuzhambu and idli is my all time favorite breakfast dish. When I used to stay in Manju Aunties place during college days, she made idli and Chicken Kari Kuzhambu on ALL Sunday mornings. This is one of my best food memories ever. She would keep 2 idlis on the plate and pour a lot of this curry on the side. We would have finished the entire big pot of chicken curry when the breakfast was over. Uncle used to say “ரெண்டு இட்லிக்கு ஒரு குண்டா குழம்பு சாபிடற ஆளு நீங்க தான். நானும் தான்.” (We are the only ones who finish one big pot of curry for just 2 idlis). Even now when I go to Chennai, I ask her to make this for breakfast. We all would sit down ( sans the dining table) and talk until lunch after a superb idli and chicken curry breakfast.
This is a very very easy recipe and can be put together in 30 minutes. Here is how to do an awesome Madras Chicken Curry – Kari Kuzhambu.
Clean and cut half kg of chicken with bone and place it in a pressure cooker. Grind 2 tomatoes in a blender / mixie to a paste. Add it to the cooker.
Grind the ginger and garlic with 1/4 cup of water to a smooth paste. Add it to the cooker.
The masala powders for this recipe include turmeric powder, chilli powder and coriander powder. It is added in the ratio of 0.5:1:2. I added 1/2 tablespoon turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon chilli powder and 2 tablespoon coriander powder. So do not change this ratio.
Add in one finely chopped onion and the masala powders. Add the salt. Add one cup of water.
Mix everything well and cover the cooker with a lid and pressure cook for 4 whistles. Approximately 7-8 minutes on medium flame. Switch off the flame and wait for the pressure to release naturally.
Heat oil in a pan and add in the fennel seeds, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon. Let it splutter. Add in the cooked chicken curry.
Add in the curry leaves, green chillies and the coconut paste. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.
Serve hot with idli or dosa. There is no better way to start your day!
- ½ kg Chicken with bone
- 2 Tomatoes
- 10 cloves Garlic
- 2 inch piece Ginger, peeled
- 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
- ½ tablespoon Turmeric powder
- 1 tablespoon Red chilli powder
- 2 tablespoon Coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon Peanut oil
- ½ tablespoon Fennel seeds
- 3 Cloves
- 3 Cardamom
- 2 inch piece Cinnamon
- 3 sprigs curry leaves
- 6 green chillies
- 4 tablespoons coconut ground into a paste with ½ cup of water
- 3-4 coriander leaves, chopped fine
- Clean and cut half kg of chicken with bone and place it in a pressure cooker. Grind 2 tomatoes in a blender / mixie to a paste. Add it to the cooker.
- Grind the ginger and garlic with ¼ cup of water to a smooth paste. Add it to the cooker.
- The masala powders for this recipe include turmeric powder, chilli powder and coriander powder. It is added in the ratio of 0.5:1:2. I added ½ tablespoon turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon chilli powder and 2 tablespoon coriander powder. So do not change this ratio.
- Add in one finely chopped onion and the masala powders. Add the salt. Add one cup of water.
- Mix everything well and cover the cooker with a lid and pressure cook for 4 whistles. Approximately 7-8 minutes on medium flame. Switch off the flame and wait for the pressure to release naturally. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a pan and add in the fennel seeds, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon. Let it splutter. Add in the cooked chicken curry.
- Add in the curry leaves, green chillies and the coconut paste. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.
What is the ratio for 1 1/2 – 2kg chicken?
Hi mam,
Prepared tis dish today…
Came out very well as I am vegetarian, prepared for my hubby and kids for the first time.
Everyone loved it.
Thank you!
Excellent recipe Kannamma. Loved it.
Thank you for the wonderful and finger licking recipe. Made today. Everyone loves it. Thanks again Suguna.
whenever I cook chicken it turns rubbery.
what can be the problem
Instead of the coconut paste, how much coconut milk would I need to substitute?
Omg!! What an easy recipe for such a great taste??!! The last step….. “tempering” elevates the taste of the dish. Handsdown…… I would definitely recommend it to my friends.
Thank you. Glad that you liked it!
Hi Suguna! I am new at cooking chicken recipes at home, this recipe was a first and what a start it was! I have made this curry umpteen number of times with just one change where i use coconut milk and everyone in my family just love it. It goes very well with idlis indeed. Will try out your other chicken recipes too. Thank you so much and keep up the good work.
Thank you Jyoti. Glad that you liked it! Coconut milk will make the curry very creamy. Happy cooking!
Yummy, one pot cooking. Quick , easy and beautiful consistency!
Thank you so much!
Hi Suguna,
I have tried this recipe a number of times and have followed your instructions to the tee. I should say the result has been consistently tasty, full of flavours and aromatic. Thank you for this.
Question – Can the same recipe be replicated for potatoes.i.e., replace chicken with potatoes.
Please advise.
Cheers,
Satishan
No Sathisan. You may try many of our kurma recipes on the site. The chicken bones is what gives flavor to this dish. I would not recommend substituting.
Exactly, I feel even boneless chicken is useless for curries . No flavour
Tried this gravy today.. It was delicious and was a perfect combination for idli :))
Thank you so much!
can you give me madras currry pwd that can be made at home?
thnks in avance.
thanku if i make this curry with 1 kg chicken can I double the ingredients or alter some – pl reply, thnks
sure you can double the ingredients!
hi, my curry turned out very tasty and all thanks to you!
just out of curiousity – two queries…..pl reply
in your madras curry pwd there is jeera, how come in your recipe it is not
there?
At the end, if the tomatoe sourness is not enough, can tamarind be used?
thats what i did!
Hi Maria, This is a family recipe and the masala powder differs from each home. Sure you can add some tamarind at the end if you wish. Feel free to adapt the recipe to your family’s liking.
Hello,
This evening I made this curry. It came out quite nicely. In fact the aroma before closing the pressure cooker, was too good.. ?..
The only thing I did differently was, i put the chicken last into the pressure cooker. I kept all the other ingredients for sometime on slow flame..
how much coconut should we put ? Somehow I feel I added too much coconut milk which kind of altered the taste of the curry..
on the whole, this is an awesome receipe..
There is no coconut milk in the recipe. We use 4 tablespoons shredded coconut ground into a paste with ½ cup of water.
Hi Suguna,
You and your brilliant recipes are one of the treasures of the internet. Please keep them coming. This madras Kari was magic to the taste buds and I am going to meticulously attempt every dish you have here.
Quick question – my pressure cooker does not whistle and the chicken does tend to get overcooked while i wait. Is there a solution to this?
Hi Satish,
Try timing the pressure cooker as each cooker is different depending on the size.
Hi Amma. Can this kuzhambu be cooked in a pot over the stove top instead of in a pressure cooker?
Sure you can cook on a pot but pressure cooker is easier and faster.
Hi Suguna,
I was desperately looking for some different chicken curry and I happen to be reading yours. I was impressed with the recipe as it was so easy to prepare in the first place. Gave it a try and for the surprise the dish is simply sumptuous and yummmyyyy. Thank you so much for such an easy and tasty recipe.
Thank you Suja.
Is there any secret in using Peanut oil, or can we use regular canola oil, Pls explain.
You can use canola oil. Sesame oil and peanut oil is traditionally used in Tamil cuisine and they are less processed.
Going to try with Peanut oil[first time] will update the results:-)
Thanks!! Tasted good with Peanut oil.
Thank you so much for this recipe – it came out really well. Reminded me of my days in Chennai when I used to visit a friend’s place for sunday morning breakfast of dosa/idli with chicken curry.
Thank you again.
Regards
Kartik
Thank you Kartik!
Very good
Hi Kannamma. Can we use boneless chicken breasts? Otherwise would whole chicken legs or thighs work? I don’t know how to cut up chicken with bones.
Thanks!
whole chicken legs or thighs will work. The bone adds in a lot of flavor to the curry.
Awesome recipe!!
Thank you Lekha.
Can we eat this with rice?
yes Anis. You can.
Oh my god! I followed the same ratio proportions as you had mentioned above and the chicken curry was awesome, people at home looked stunning at me…. what a day…. thanks you so much…. I have become your fan:-)
Thank you so much Suhashini Manjunath!
I just tried this curry today. It was ridiculously easy and it came out to be super delicious!! My husband and I had with Dosa and he just couldn’t stop praising about the curry!! And he is so waiting to have it again for dinner!! Being in US, I missed our authentic South Indian flavors and there are not many good south Indian restaurants close by. Even when I was in India, whatever I had in restaurants, I thought it can be prepared only by those expert chefs!! But these days Everytime i try your recipies I realize how authenticity doesn’t need expertise but the right recipe. Now I can prepare restaurant style awesome curries in a jiffy at home!! Thank you so much!!
Thank you so much. Really glad that you liked the recipe.
Great recipe! Thank you Suguna. I am able to cook and enjoy the south indian dishes right at home. So Thank you again!
Thank you so much!
Awesome curry suguna…eating dosai with curry….
Thank you so much. Really glad that the recipe worked for you!
Hey…well said… Idly/dosa with kari kuzhuambu is one of my family’s signature food..aaah mouth watering
Is is the most quick and tastiest curry I’ve ever made! Everybody enjoyed it with roti and idli!
Thank you for this fantastic recipe!
I have some left over chicken without the gravy which I don’t want to waste, can i re do the whole process and add chicken to it? Or no? Please let me know
The chicken might become dry if you cook it again as its already cooked. Instead you can shred the chicken and use it in omelette or as a stuffing for dosa or chapati.
Cannot find curry leaves, would i be able substitute anything else instead??
You can just leave it out Tara. Its ok.
hi there, Wanted to try out this recipe with a whole chicken. It’s probably around 1.2kg. Should I just double all the spices/onion/tomato? What would you suggest?
Thanks in advance!
sure. you can double the recipe.
This was excellent! Reminded me of my college days in Chennai!
Thank you so much for trying out! Really glad you liked it.
It was amazing!! I didn’t add green chillies and added half of chili powder because my kids don’t eat spicy food. It was still very yummy!!
Thank you. Happy Cooking. Glad to know that the children liked it.
Hi Suguna,
This week decided to treat my daughter to this yummy Madras Kozhi Kuzhambu for dinner… I hadn’t told her what I was cooking, but I guess the aromas wafted across and there she was, perched on the kitchen counter, all drooly and insisting on tasting it ( never mind it’s hot!!) . It came out great ( the sombu got slightly brown.. Not sure if this should be so) and to quote my princess ” lip smacking gooood” .. She had copious quantities ( not quite a Kundam but came close ) with Chapatis just now for dinner and she can’t wait to have it with Idly for breakfast tomorrow.
Thanks for sharing this simple cook in a jiffy recipe. Your recipes have ensured that I have a repertoire of dishes to surprise my daughter and her appetite seems to be peaking too !
I am reading and rereading your comment sir. Love the way you narrate your kitchen tales with your daughter. I am so happy to be a tiny part of that tale. Happy Cooking you guys!
Thanks for the tasty madras chicken curry recipe sugunaji…we just loved it..
Thank You Chaya for writing in. I am really glad that you liked it.