This Chicken Curry Recipe has so much flavor. The grilled chicken is marinated in a flavorful curry marinade and then grilled. This tender chicken is delicious served with rice or pita bread.
The chicken marinade is made with buttermilk and spices and it freezes beautifully for an easy make-ahead freezer meal.
You can easily skip ahead to the part of this post that tells you ALL the ways that you can eat this fantastic grilled chicken.
When you're busy, getting a healthy dinner on the table every night can be surprisingly challenging. It can be tempting to pick up the phone and order takeout. Indian food, anyone? I've figured out how to make eating healthy easier, even when you are super busy.
This chicken curry recipe is made with a delicious chicken marinade, simple ingredients, and takes 5 minutes to prep!
The cook time for this recipe is less than 20 minutes. Did I mention that 18 of that 20 minutes is completely hands-off? Forget takeout!
What You're Going to Love About This Recipe
- Flavor: The Grilled Chicken is super flavorful and it tastes so good that it passes my "eat-it-cold" test. I'll eat these leftovers right out of the fridge.
- Zero Clean Up: There is almost zero clean up with this recipe.
- Freezer Friendly: You can make a double batch and freeze the second one. OR if you are cooking for one, just split this recipe in half and freeze one half right away.
- Versatile: You can eat this chicken curry recipe as your core protein in several different meals, so you won't get bored.
Recipe Notes
The secret to this chicken marinade is the buttermilk. The acid in the buttermilk makes this chicken soooo tender and juicy. Once you make this recipe, I know it'll be one of your favorites. Buttermilk makes everything better, from pancakes to fried chicken to this insanely good curry!
Ingredients you'll need
- Chicken: Boneless chicken breast or thighs are best for this recipe.
- Spices: Yellow curry powder, ground turmeric, ground cumin, salt, and pepper give the curry sauce a mega wow of flavor! Thai yellow curry powder and red curry powder are also delicious.
- Buttermilk: The acid in the buttermilk works to tenderize the chicken. If you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can substitute Greek yogurt, heavy cream, or coconut milk.
How to make the chicken curry marinade
I make this marinade right in a zip top freezer bag. This keeps clean-up to a minimum.
PRO-TIP: Make a double batch and stick one batch in the freezer to eat later this month. Or next week. Or later today. Or all three. Mmmmmm...
Step 1: Set up a large bowl and place a gallon-size plastic bag into it.
Step 2: Add the buttermilk.
Step 3: Add the spices to the bag.
Step 4: Add the chicken pieces to the bag.
Step 5: Seal the bag and then smoosh it all around to make sure that the chicken is covered with the yellow curry marinade.
Step 6: Marinate the chicken for a minimum of a 30 minutes, up to overnight. You can also freeze this recipe in the marinade. I find that if I freeze my meal prep bags flat, I can fit a lot more in the freezer. Plus, that makes it easier to defrost!
Different ways to cook curry chicken
This yellow curry chicken recipe can be grilled or baked in the oven.
Grilling Curried Chicken: Heat the grill to medium-high. Grill 6 minutes per side. Always be sure to let your meat rest before you cut into it.
How To Bake Curried Chicken: Preheat the oven to 425℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the curry chicken from the marinade and place it on the baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes.
Safe temperature guidelines for poultry
The internal temperature of chicken should be 165℉. A probe thermometer can tell you exactly what temperature your chicken is. Why guess when you can use tools?
For more information on safe cooking temperatures, check out this table by foodsafety.gov.
All of the Serving Suggestions
This chicken recipe is so versatile, you can eat it a million different ways. These are all of my favorites. If you come up with another awesome way to eat this recipe, I'd love to hear about it in the comments!
🍡 Chicken Curry Kabobs
To make chicken kabobs, dice the chicken into large bite-sized pieces before you add them to the marinade. After marinating, skewer the chicken on either soaked bamboo skewers OR metal skewers.
Grill and server with rice.
🥗 Chicken Curry Salad
I make this a lot with leftover grilled chicken. Dice the leftover chicken, add chopped apples, pistachios, and a quarter cup of mayonnaise. (If you happen to have leftover rotisserie chicken, pop that in, too.) Serve on top of salad OR on your favorite sandwich bread, pita, or rolls.
🌯 Chicken Curry Wraps
Wraps are another great way to enjoy this flavorful chicken. You can dice the leftover chicken and add your favorite greens. You can also mix up a quick yogurt and dill sauce to drizzle on the wrap. The Chicken Curry Salad is also delicious in a wrap.
🍲 Chicken Curry with Rice
Serve the grilled curry chicken with rice and steamed broccoli. Get a little fancy and add golden raisins and chopped almonds to your rice! This is a super healthy combination that you can prepare and then pack for easy reheating.
🌱 Thai Chicken Curry
It's a snap to modify this Indian recipe into a Thai coconut curry chicken. Add a few shakes of Thai fish sauce and a tablespoon of brown sugar to your marinade, and swap out the buttermilk for coconut milk. Serve with rice, bell peppers, carrots, and onions.
What to Serve with Yellow Chicken Curry
My absolute favorite thing to serve with this easy yellow curry chicken recipe is steamed basmati rice and a big salad. Or even just the rice! 😜 A squeeze of lime juice is also the perfect addition to the chicken and rice bowl.
When I am making this curry chicken into a wrap, I love it with fresh homemade tzatziki, or even just a little Greek yogurt with some dill and a squeeze of lime or lemon juice.
A reader favorite recipe is my Easy Curry Risotto!
Honestly, this simple Cucumber Salad is amazing with the spicy grilled chicken. Look how pretty the colors are. We eat with our eyes first, and this combo is gorgeous.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Lemon Piccata Chicken
- Chicken Teriyaki Bowls
- Easy Grilled Chicken
- Baked Chicken Thighs
- Chicken Satay
- Chipotle Chicken
- Chimichurri Chicken
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Chicken Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 to 4 lbs chicken boneless breasts or thighs
Curry Marinade
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 teaspoons yellow curry powder
- 2 teaspoons tumeric
- 2 teaspoons cumin
Instructions
- MAKE THE MARINADE: Add all of the ingredients for the curry marinade to a bowl or a zip-top bag.
- ADD THE CHICKEN: You can use chicken breasts or chicken thighs here.
- MARINATE: Marinate the chicken up to overnight. If I am cooking this recipe the same day, I usually marinate it at room temperature (unless it's really hot day). If you will cook it the next day, marinate the chicken in the refrigerator overnight.
- FREEZER MEAL: You can freeze a second batch of this recipe if you want to plan ahead.
Cook the chicken on the grill or in the oven.
- ON THE GRILL: Grill on medium-high heat for about 6 minutes per side.
- IN THE OVEN: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Bake for 12 to 20 minutes.
So simple to make this marinade recipe. It's great with a garden salad!