How to feed a crowd of people . . . . Sri Lankan Chicken Curry Recipe

Now, please don't think I am obsessed about Rick Stein: it is a coincidence that both of the dishes I cooked are his recipes, but also indicates how wonderful his dishes are!

I know I said this about the meatball recipe, but I think this is one of the dishes I am proudest of: its flavours are just wonderful.





There is a bit of work in this, like most curries, especially as you have to make the curry-powder yourself. But I swear it is worth it, and it is only about 25-30mins worth of work. If you don't have this kind of time, maybe look on Herbie's website (see Meatball post) & see if he has any powders that would work.

Sri Lankan Chicken Curry


2 tbsp coconut or vegetable oil
1.5kg chicken (I use breasts, cut into bite size chunks)
15cm cinnamon stick, broken into smaller bits
10 green cardamom pods, bruised
10 cloves
350g onions or shallots, thinly sliced
40g garlic, crushed
25g fresh ginger, peeled & grated (I can't be arsed to grate, so just finely chop)
2 tbsp Roasted Sri Lankan Chicken Curry powder (see further below)
1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
200g tin tomato
20 curry leaves
4x4cm pandan leaf (can be hard to get, use 4 bay leaves if you can't find it)
1 fat lemongrass stork, halved & lightly bruised
3 green cayenne chillies, split open lengthways
400ml coconut milk
1 tbsp lime juice

1) Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan. Season the chicken w/ S&P, add them to the pan & fry over medium for about 5 mins until golden, remove & set aside.

2) Add the cinnamon cardamom pods & cloves to the oil left in the pan and leave them to sizzle for a few seconds (that is them in the picture above). Add the onions & fry gently for 5 mins until soft & lightly browned. Add the garlic & ginger & fry for 2 minutes. Add the roasted curry powder, chili powder & tumeric & fry for 1 minute.

3) Return the chicken pieces to the pan, add the tomatoes, curry leaves, pieces of pandan leaf, lemongrass, chillies & 1 teaspoon of salt. Cover & cook gently over a medium-low heat for 25 mins or until the chicken is tender.

4) Uncover, add the coconut milk, cover again & simmer for 5 mins more. Stir in the lime juice & serve.

The Curry Powder


This is a bit of work, bit it really is worth the effort, I swear!

1 tbsp uncooked long-grain or basmati rice
50g coriander seeds
25g cumin seeds
25g fennel seeds
7.5cm cinnamon stick
1.5 tsp fenugreek seeds
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cardamom seeds
1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp black pepper
3 dried red chillies

Heat a dry, heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add the rice and shake the grains around for about 3 minutes until medium-brown in colour, taking care not to let them get too brown or burn. Tip the rice into a bowl & leave to cool while you do the same to each of the spices, one at a time, and then to the dried chillies. Mix the rice, spices & chillies together & grind (in batches if necessary) to a powder. Store in a screw top-jar, use within 3 months.