Filipino Chicken Curry is one of my favorite dishes and I have a story to share…
Once upon a time, in a far away land, there lives a princess with her parents and siblings. The queen, the princess’ mom, loves to cook for the king and her children. Though they have house fairies, the queen wants to be in-charge in the kitchen. As the princess grows up, she has finally loved cooking. Sometimes, the princess takes charge in the kitchen when the queen is not around.
One day, the queen cooked a very delightful dish for lunch and she asked one of her children to ask the princess to come down at the kitchen. But no matter how many times she has been called, the princess didn’t come. The queen finally decided to ask one of the little princesses to open the princess’ bedroom door for her to smell the food her mother has cooked for them. After a few minutes, the princess finally went down to the kitchen with her big grin. 😀
This dish is like my ‘signature dish’. Most of my friends will remember me when they see or smell Chicken Curry or anything curry. A friend even told me that I can make this dish perfectly even I close my eyes, hahaha.
Since I started cooking this myself, I have added once or twice like fried eggplants and this time, chickpeas. Well, eggplants because I love eggplants with anything. And chickpeas this time for the texture. Although I added something, the taste has never changed.
Filipino Chicken Curry recipes vary from family to family. This is ours and I hope you’ll love it.
I shared a recipe video on my YouTube channel. I hope you’ll get a chance to watch it. 🙂
Filipino Chicken Curry with Chickpeas
Ingredients
For the coconut milk & cream:
- 4 cups freshly grated coconut
- About 500 ml + 750 ml water see notes
Others:
- Cooking oil
- 4 cloves garlic sliced
- 1 onion sliced
- 1 tomato sliced
- 500 g chicken cut into pieces
- 1 red bell pepper cut into squares
- 1 green bell pepper cut into squares
- 1 large carrot cut into chunks
- 1 large potato cut into chunks
- 3-4 tbsp curry powder see notes
- 1 tsp chili powder optional
- Green long chili optional
- Salt to taste
Instructions
For the coconut milk & cream (skip this if you are using canned coconut milk/cream – see notes)
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BOWL 1: Add 4 cups of grated coconut, then pour about 500 ml of water. Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze for a few minutes.
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BOWL 2: Place a strainer over BOWL 2 and pour the contents from BOWL 1. Squeeze again to get the coconut cream (first squeeze). Make sure to return the coconut meat to BOWL 1 to prepare for the second squeezing.
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BACK TO BOWL 1: With the used coconut meat, add water again (about 500-750 ml, depends on you). Squeeze again for a few minutes.
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BOWL 3: Place a strainer over BOWL 3 and pour the contents from BOWL 1. Squeeze again to get the coconut milk (second squeeze). This time, you can discard the used coconut meat.
To cook the chicken curry:
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In a pot with medium heat, saute garlic until fragrant. Add onion and tomatoes (I love to use tomatoes when cooking chicken curry – for me, it gives an additional amazingness to the dish). Cook onions and tomatoes until soft, then add green and red bell peppers.
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Add curry powder and chili powder (if using). Mix to coat chicken pieces, then add carrots and potatoes. If using chickpeas and chili, also add this time. (See notes about the chickpeas)
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Add the coconut milk (from BOWL 3 – second squeeze) and simmer for about 30 minutes over low-medium heat. (You can add all the coconut milk, depending on how “soupy” you want your dish to be. But remember that you may need to adjust the seasoning.)
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After 30 minutes, check the doneness of the chicken and veggies. If cooked, add the coconut cream (from BOWL 2 – first squeeze). Let this boil then add salt to taste.
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Remove from the heat and serve with rice.
Recipe Notes
You can put more vegetables if you want to. Maybe celery, eggplant, string beans You can also have a different slice of veggies, if you want – it’s up to your liking. 🙂
You can put more coconut milk/cream… or less. You can use canned coconut milk/cream, maybe you just have to add water, too.
This is not a spicy dish but if you cut the green chili and add it with the carrots and potatoes.
I always use McCormick curry and chili powder. I haven’t tried using other brands. Using other brands of powders may alter the taste. You can use your preferred brand, if you wish.
As to the chickpeas, I used dried chickpeas. I soaked them in water overnight. The next day, I drained the chickpeas and washed them. If you want to add chickpeas, you can also use the canned one and add it in the middle of cooking.
I always eat this with rice and boiled eggs.
I am also sharing this at
