Every thought of making your own Indian curry at home? Look at this wonderful black pepper and garlic chicken thigh curry. How authentic and how yummy does this look?

I don’t know anybody who doesn’t like some form of Indian food. You can have most types of meat. Lamb, beef, chicken. Seafood if you like. Vegetarian too. What’s more, it can be served as a dry dish or with a sauce.

And then’s there’s the spice. The bad boy Thal if you have the stomach. Even a Vindaloo is too hot for me. Then there’s the, what they call medium Madras. Phew! Then a few other easier curries like to tomatoey Rogan Josh and mild creamy Korma. Then, of course, there’s everyone’s favourite Chicken Tikka Masala. Whatever you fancy, there’s something for all tastes.

With all of this variety, the interesting fact, and the main common factor with most curries, and Indian food generally, is that we tend to have it cooked for us in a restaurant. Or at least get a takeaway. By far the majority never consider cooking a curry from scratch. Yes, we may get a jar of curry cook-in-sauce but rarely do we grab the spices and grind them down to make a curry paste.

Well, this is exactly what I’ve done with this black pepper and garlic chicken thigh curry. I’ve dry roasted the spices and marinated the chicken and guess what? It’s not that difficult. What’s more, the end result is a lot tastier, and certainly a lot more healthy, with no added colourings, than most curries from your local Indian takeaway.

This is an easy curry recipe for those just starting out making their own Indian food. Give it a go. You never know, it may change your whole view of cooking Indian food at home…

1. Gather all of the ingredients together

As I said above, this is a very tasty but also very simple curry recipe and I’ve used chicken thighs as the main meat component. This was just a personal choice but many other ingredients could be used. Try beef or lamb, just cook for a little longer to make it tender. Or try king prawns. If on a vegetarian diet try root vegetables and cauliflower. Maybe add a little spinach at the end. There are endless combinations.

To start with though, get all of these ingredients together.

The printable recipe is below and makes enough black pepper and garlic chicken thigh curry for 4 people if served with rice and/or naan bread.

2. Trim the chicken thighs

I’ve used skinless and boned free-range chicken thighs but, even though pretty much 100% prepared, there is still a little fat on each thigh. Just whizz through with a knife and trim and white fat from the chicken thighs and then set aside while the marinade is made.

3. The curry paste

To make the curry paste first dry roast the black peppercorns and coriander seeds. By dry roast I mean add the seeds to a small frying pan, with no oil, and just heat through until you start to smell the spice fragrances.

Another good sign that the seeds are roasted is when the seeds start to pop. When this happens, take the seeds off the heat and add the seeds to the mortar part of the pestle and mortar.

Now, using the pestle, grind the seeds to a coarse powder.

Once the black peppercorns and coriander seeds have been prepared put them in a mixing bowl and add the turmeric, ground cumin and a good pinch of sea salt…

With the dry ingredients all together add a tablespoon of olive oil and the juice from one lemon.

Mix this together thoroughly to form the curry paste.

4. Marinade the chicken thighs.

With the curry paste made add the chicken thighs and mix in the curry paste.

The chicken thighs need to be marinaded for at least 2 hours and, preferably, overnight.

5. Make the base curry

With the chicken thighs properly marinated the base curry can be made. To do this start by heating a tablespoon of olive oil into a casserole pot and add the sliced onions, crushed garlic and shredded ginger.

Using the casserole pot lid sweat the onion, garlic and ginger off over low heat for 8-10 minutes, or until the onions have turned translucent. Be careful not to burn the ingredients.

With the onions cooked add the marinated chicken thighs and cook through for around 5 minutes.

Now, add the coconut milk, stir in and bring to the boil.

The black pepper and garlic chicken thigh curry is now ready for slow cooking.

6. Cook the curry and serve

In truth, this curry could be cooked through on the stove for around 15 minutes and it would be ready to serve. However, I like to slow-cook my pot dishes simply because it makes the meat far more tender. Plus, I can sit down and half a glass of wine before dinner! ????

To slow cook, preheat the oven to 180C / 160C Fan and place the curry filled casserole pot in the oven for at least an hour. Check after the hour and if the curry sauce is not thick enough for your taste then simply leave in the oven longer or add back to the stove and reduce the liquid down to your liking.

And there you have it. Black pepper and garlic chicken thigh curry. Serve with basmati rice and naan bread. The taste of India cooked in your own home.  Make it yourself and impress your family. You’ll be surprised how much better than a takeaway this homemade beauty really is. Yum!

I do hope you enjoyed this post and give it a go yourself. It really is a tasty recipe. If you enjoy it then why not try one of The Yum Yum Club’s other great recipes. I listed a selection below. Or just click on the recipe tab at the top of the page.

As always, many thanks for reading and until next time… Steve.

7. Nutritional Values

8. Printable recipe