Mild mango chicken curry is the sweetest little curry on the menu. Mouthfuls of chicken breast and soft, ripe mango in a richly coconut-based gravy are as heart-warming and soul-nourishing as the Goan sands themselves. This one-pot recipe is a one-way ticket to paradise* in under 40 minutes.
*Food paradise, not actual paradise.
Not spicy enough for you? Well, you can blast yourself even further East with this Thai-inspired braised coconut curry chicken thigh recipe. Add chilli at will.
Chicken curry with mango
Gleaming yellow like the tropical sun itself, this chicken curry with mango dish is a real treat. Ideal for those who don’t do spicy, this recipe contains only half a teaspoon of chilli powder which can be dialled up or down to taste.
All the signature curry ingredients; sautéed onions, plenty of garlic, a generous spoon of fresh grated ginger, coriander, cumin and curry powders, are present. Blended together with soothing coconut milk and sweet, pulpy mango together they make a paradisical dish everyone will enjoy.
Recipe tips and notes
- I hope I’ve honoured the memory of my favourite curry from my favourite restaurant in Canada. It seems a lifetime ago, but it’s a recipe that still inspires me. I hope you love it too.
- It’s a lovely little curry reminiscent of chicken korma due to its trademark sweet, coconutty flavour. Fresh ripe mangoes make it even more exotic.
- I used two large mangoes. One is blended into the sauce and the other is sliced and added to the almost finished curry for texture.
- Mangoes can be tricky to slice. They’re off-round shape and large, flat stone are unwieldy! Luckily, I learned how to negotiate them from the pros in the Philippines. Let me share what I know:
- First of all, don’t peel it. Stand the mango on the chopping board with the pointy end towards you. Cut downwards on either side of the slender stone. You should have two fleshy semi-circles and a middle bit. Then scoop the flesh out of the circles with a large spoon, like you would with an avo, then slice the mango mounds.
- And the stone? Personally, I peel the skin from around the edge, stand over the kitchen sink and gnaw at it like a wild animal. I know you do too!
- Or, more reservedly, you could cut away as much flesh as possible and throw that in the pot.
- It’s important that the mangoes are ripe- that’s when they’re at their sweetest and juiciest.
- I’ve used chicken breasts in this recipe as they are easy to slice. If you usually go for thighs, you can definitely use them. Go for the boneless kind for convenience!
- Finally, I add fresh cilantro (coriander (UK)) and a sprinkle of nigella seeds to finish the dish. A bit of garnish guarantees the wow! factor.
Serving suggestions
As a family of four, we have our takeaway curry order format down. It goes like this:
- a main dish each
- a vegetable side
- bread
- rice
- poppadoms
- and the extra thing that we were on the fence about and decided against and then decided to get
What does yours look like?
The home-cooked curry order is not that different. I pare it back to two main dishes, one meat and one vegetarian, as recipe quantities are bigger than the individual portions from restaurants. But the rest is the same!
With this juicy mango and chicken recipe at the heart of the meal, the at-home menu might look like this:
- Chicken curry with mango
- Paneer tikka masala – soft cheese cubes in silky masala sauce
- Aloo gobi cauliflower and potato curry – a lightly spiced, dry curry
- Homemade naan bread – so fresh and milky you’ll never buy naan again!
- Coconut rice or plain basmati
Storage and leftovers
Curries are the perfect freezer-stocking recipes. One-pot cooking makes them low-prep and easy to batch cook, and they improve with a bit of chill-time. This chicken and mango curry will keep in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
When that unexpected cold snap is upon us in about a month’s time, put the curry in the fridge overnight to defrost and then reheat gently on the hob.
NB This curry will only freeze well if you used full fat coconut milk in the recipe. Reduced fat tends to thaw to a grainy texture which is still edible but unpalatable.
On-the-day leftovers can be refrigerated, covered, for 3-4 days.
More curry recipes to try
- Chinese Chicken Curry
- Chickpea and Butternut Squash Curry
- Chicken Katsu Curry (Air Fryer Recipe)
- Indian Kofta Curry (Meatball Curry)
Mango Chicken Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil or ghee
- 1 onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tbsp curry powder
- ½ tsp ground chillies
- 700g / 1.5 lbs skinless boneless chicken breasts or chicken thighs sliced
- 2 large mangoes peeled and sliced, divided
- 250ml / 1 cup chicken stock
- 400ml / 14 oz coconut milk full fat
- 1-2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)
- 1 tsp nigella seeds for garnish
Instructions
- In a large pan heat the oil or melt the ghee and start frying the onions over medium heat for 10 minutes. If the onions start to burn, add a splash of water, your onions should turn slightly brown by the end. Then add the pressed garlic and grated ginger, cook for half a minute while stirring. Add the coriander, cumin, curry powder and the chilli powder, stir to combine and cook for a minute or until the spices start to smell aromatic.
- Add the half of the mangoes, 1 cup of chicken stock, half the coconut milk and simmer for approximately 5-7 minutes. Then use the stick blender to blend the sauce. Alternatively you can use a blender or a food processor, then return the sauce back to the pan and add the rest of the coconut milk, bring to a simmer.
- Add the sliced chicken breasts, the rest of the sliced mangoes and bring to simmer, cook for 20 minutes. Add the chopped fresh cilantro and serve with rice.
Leave a Reply