I was introduced to this slow cooker coconut curry chicken a few years ago. I was at my mom’s house and she offered me something to eat. She handed me a bowl of something chicken and saucy with rice. I took a bite and then started shoveling it into my mouth. As I scarfed, I asked my mom what on earth I was eating. And it was this very recipe. I knew my family would be fans of this. When I count my blessings, I include the blessing of having kids that like curry.
I serve this probably once a month. It is great for nights when people are in and out of the house. As one kid gets home from baseball, another is leaving to a friend’s house. They can grab a scoop of rice from the rice cooker and a scoop of this chicken from the slow cooker and they are fed.
How to make slow cooker coconut curry chicken
You don’t have to do any major prep for this recipe. You are going to add all the sauce ingredients to the blender and get it nice and smooth and pour it over the chicken. That’s it! It is super easy. You pour the sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker and set it to go on low for 6 hours.
When the chicken is cooked, take two forks and shred the chicken inside the slow cooker pot. It will fall apart. I actually usually use a pair of tongs and just squeeze the chicken and it shreds. I like bigger pieces of shredded chicken. Otherwise, the whole thing can begin to look more like a stew. Here is an ingredients rundown for this slow cooker coconut curry chicken.
Onion, green bell pepper and garlic
All you need to do is get the peel of the onion off and then add it to the blender. With the green bell pepper, just rough chunks. And throw the garlic in whole. When it comes to substitutions, I wouldn’t sub out the green bell pepper. It is what makes the flavor perfect.
Tomato paste
We use the whole 6 ounce can of tomato paste for this recipe. I am always a little nervous about a whole can of tomato paste. It seems like it could overwhelm everything. But it doesn’t in this recipe. It gives the sauce a nice base.
Coconut milk
It seems no good curry is complete without coconut milk. Did anyone else load up on canned goods as the pandemic was ramping up? I sure did. And coconut milk was one item I now have way too much of.
Garam masala and curry powder
I went ahead and looked up what exacty garam masala is. Garam means “hot” and masala means “mixture”. Garam masala is made of up lots of punchy spices like cinnamon, peppercorns, fennel and coriander seeds. Anything with garam masala in it is going to be good. The combination of garam masala and curry powder in this slow cooker coconut curry chicken is perfect and will make your house smell warm and inviting.
Now let’s get down to business.
PrintSlow Cooker Coconut Curry Chicken
- Total Time: 6 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Slow cooker coconut curry chicken is a weeknight meal dream. You combine the sauce in the blender and pour it over the chicken and that’s it!
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 6 ounce can tomato paste
- 1 15 ounce can coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- In a blender or food processor, add onion, green bell pepper, garlic, tomato paste, coconut milk, garam masala, curry powder and salt. Blend until smooth.
- Add chicken thighs to the slow cooker and pour the sauce over the top. Set heat to low and cook for 6 hours.
- After 6 hours, shred the chicken with two forks. Stir in cilantro.
Notes
You can serve this with steamed rice or flatbread, like naan.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 hours
- Category: chicken, curry
- Method: slow cooker
Keywords: slow cooker, curry, chicken
Hungry for more curry?
Yellow Curry Chicken Sheet Pan Dinner