This mildly spiced Kerala chicken stew is a hearty soup made with chicken, carrots, potatoes and curry leaf spiced coconut milk, making this the ultimate Indian comfort food dish.
If you’ve never had Kerala chicken stew before, think “a south Indian version of chicken soup.” Everyone loves chicken soup. It’s absolute comfort food on a cold day or when you’re under the weather. Eating a bowl of chicken soup instantly makes you feel better. Well, this coconut chicken stew does all of those same things and in my opinion, it’s even more delicious than regular chicken soup.
This lightly spiced coconut chicken stew is a dish that’s often served for breakfast/brunch in Keralite homes. I love making it for Sunday brunch because it makes the day feel a little extra special. You can make this any time though – thanks to the instant pot, this dish would even make for a simple weeknight recipe.
As someone who grew up in a North Indian family, I find the flavor of this curry to be very different from the dishes that I grew up eating. It’s unique and certainly not a dish that you’d find in an Indian restaurant, though I have no idea why.
I honestly prefer this chicken stew to butter chicken. I just love the flavor of curry leaf spiced coconut milk with chicken and potatoes. To be honest, I love curry leaf spiced anything.
I tell my husband all the time that I must have been Keralite in another life because the cuisine is my favorite – it’s absolutely for me. I learned how to make this stew after watching my mother-in-law make it many times and though my dish will never be as good as hers (because I swear she and all Indian moms switch up their recipes every time they make a dish!) – it’s pretty darn close. It’s also much easier to make and faster too – all thanks to the instant pot. My husband loves this dish and he’s super picky when it comes to Keralite food (and all food really lol), so I am sure you will love it too.
You can serve this stew with appam (lacy rice flour and coconut milk pancakes). I don’t have a recipe for appam on my blog yet because I have yet to perfect them. When I do perfect them (one day?), I’ll be sure to share 🙂 In the meantime, you can serve this with rice or another type of Indian bread. I really like this with my paleo naan. Most of the time though, I just eat a bowl of this stew by itself. It’s so, so good.
I hope you all love this stew as much as I do!
Instant Pot Kerala Chicken Stew
Instant Pot Kerala Chicken Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 red onion thinly sliced
- 20-30 curry leaves
- 1 ½ pounds skinless and boneless chicken thighs cut into quarters
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
Spices
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon meat masala
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- 2 medium potatoes approx. 1 pound, peeled and cubed
- 2 carrots sliced
- 1 13.5 ounce can full-fat coconut milk
Instructions
- Press sauté, add the coconut oil and when it melts, add the onion. Stir-fry for 10-12 minutes or until they turn brown. Remove some of the onions and set them aside to use as a garnish.
- Add the curry leaves and the chicken. Stir-fry for 8-9 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer no longer pink and is mostly cooked through.
- Add the ginger and ground spices and give everything a good mix so that the chicken is coated with all of the spices.
- Add the potatoes and carrots, stir, then add the coconut milk.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 4 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes. Open the valve to release any remaining pressure.
- Garnish with the browned onions and serve.
Sukhi says
Hi Ashley,
I would love to try this recipe. I have one question, can I use marinated chicken thighs in this recipe? and for how long do I have to cook in case I substitute boneless chicken with chicken thigh?
Thanks
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Sukhi, you can marinate the chicken if you’d like but it’s really not necessary for this recipe. I use boneless chicken thighs. I haven’t tried this with chicken breast but I would think that’d be fine to use. Let me know how it goes!
Sangu says
This is to die for! My husband is a Mallu and he was reminiscing about his mom’s cooking when the aromas of this stew wafted through the kitchen. Thank you again!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Sangu! I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for letting me know how much you and your husband liked this stew 🙂
Shirrin Shaikh-Anwer says
Sooooo yummy! just made this and served with your brown rice recipe. another easy quick midweek meal!
so grateful for all your recipes xxx
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Shirrin, that’s so nice to hear! Thank you for letting me know how the stew turned out for you. 🙂
Rach says
Great recipe. Thanks so much. looking forward to your future appam recipe!
My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Rach! Glad you liked it 🙂
Shital Barman says
this was super yummy! i made both the chicken and the veggie versions and both were super duper hits. Goes very well with Appam. Thank you
My Heart Beets says
Hi Shital, I’m so glad you liked both stews! Thank you for letting me know how they turned out for you 🙂
Maya says
Once again, you hit it out of the park and make my heart happy with flavors of home. The meat masala was spot on and this was so easy to make. Definitely adding to my regular rotation in the fall/winter!
My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Maya! I’m so glad you liked the stew and the meat masala 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you!
Charlotte says
Wow, this recipe was really delicious! The flavor profile of the meat masala, curry leaves and coconut milk was amazing – it really is the ultimate comfort food! This was the first time we tried a Kerala recipe and we can’t wait to try the others!!
My Heart Beets says
Charlotte, that’s so great to hear 🙂 Thank you for letting me know how much you liked this! I can’t wait to hear what you think of other Keralite recipes you try!
Leora says
I too grew up in a non Keralite household but my best friend growing up was Keralite and her Mom made the most fabulous food. I distinctly remember her stew. I have to say this recipe is absolutely spot on! I made it last night for dinner and it took me back to my childhood. Thank you!
My Heart Beets says
Leora, that’s so great to hear! Thank you for letting me know how you liked this dish 🙂
J says
This is the second time that I made this. I served this with Appams. So so so good and easy to make. Tastes great with some rotis or even plain bread.
My Heart Beets says
That’s so great to hear! Thank you for letting me know how much you like this chicken stew 🙂