A simple mix of spices is the secret weapon for this incredible Easy Coconut Curry that’s made in just 30 minutes. The sauce is utterly addictive, and pairs beautifully with vegetables, legumes and proteins. I’ve used pumpkin and lentils here, but see the recipe for the “formula” to use it for what you please!
If you’ve ever dumped curry powder into liquid then stomped your foot in a huff when you found the sauce to be meh, then this Easy Coconut Curry sauce is for you!
You’re going to absolutely love that you can find all the spices at supermarkets.
You’re going to adore the beautiful coconut flavour that mingles with the spices.
You’ll go bonkers over how it tastes like an Indian curry – except you made it in 30 minutes from scratch.
And you’re going to really enjoy lapping up all the compliments from your family and friends. (“OMG that’s the best curry I’ve ever had!!” <– True story, text from a friend)
THE CURRY SPICES
Curry powder is the base for this Easy Coconut Curry, but it’s just not enough on it’s own. At least, not for my palette.
I tried to cut out a couple of spices to simplify it (the paprika and cumin). Then just the paprika. But it just wasn’t the same.
So they’re all staying in. 🙂
The only one that you may not be familiar with is garam masala. Here in Australia, you’ll find it at all the major supermarkets nowadays, and it costs no more than other spices. It’s a crucial spice mix in Indian cooking and smells like a potent curry powder. It really makes a difference in simple curry sauces, so be sure not to skip it!
THE SAUCE BASE
There’s nothing tricky about the sauce. It starts with the usual sautéing of onion, garlic and ginger (fresh please!), after which the Spices are cooked for a minute.
This really brings out the flavour of the spices, makes them bloom.
I use 3 liquids in this Easy Coconut Curry. Coconut milk (full fat please, low fat is too thin and lacks flavour), tomato passata (tomato puree in the States) which is smooth and thick so it helps thicken the sauce (crushed tomato is also ok), plus chicken or vegetable broth for flavour.
Give it a mix, and there you have your curry sauce. And this is where you can unleash your wild side and let the creative juices flow.
Or, as the case may be, rummage in your pantry and squabble around in the fridge and use whatever you can find. 🙂
UNLEASHING YOUR WILD SIDE
This is where things get fun.
You can literally put anything in this Easy Coconut Curry Sauce and it’s going to taste great.
I’ve used lentils and pumpkin here, stirred through baby spinach at the end and a handful of cashews (my friends go bonkers over this combo).
Use any beans you want – chickpeas are an obvious choice, but any beans will taste great. There aren’t many veggies I wouldn’t use in this (maybe fennel and beetroot), and it would be brilliant with fish, prawns/shrimp, poultry, beef and lamb.
I’ve included a guide in the recipe notes for when to add different ingredients. For proteins, it’s well worth searing them before starting the recipe, then just add them back in later once the sauce is done.
Just imagine the possibilities…..!!!!
30 minutes. That’s how far away you are from a homemade-from-scratch Coconut Curry.
The flavour is not quite as in-your-face punchy like with Chicken Tikka Masala. But then again, you haven’t had to marinate overnight and you’ve used half the spices. In fact, I intentionally dialled back the spices in this recipe to let the coconut flavour come through.
But no one could ever say this is lacking in taste. No one has ever accused me of making bland food – and I intend to keep it that way!! – Nagi x
Spiciness: Low, as long as your Curry Powder and Garam Masala are not spicy. Recipe video below.
This 30 minute recipe is all about the sauce. A mild coconut curry with a beautiful depth of flavour that belies how quick and easy it is. Tastes like an Indian curry, but not as intense, nor spicy. It's utterly addictive. I really love lentils and pumpkin with this creamy sauce, but feel free to use whatever you want, including proteins - see notes.
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 tsp fresh ginger , finely grated
- 1/2 onion , finely chopped (brown or yellow)
- 400g/14oz can coconut milk (full fat)
- 1 cup/ 250 ml chicken broth
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml tomato passata (tomato puree) (Note 1)
- 400 g/14 oz can brown lentils , drained
- 250 g / 8 oz pumpkin (~3 cups) , cut into 2cm / 4/5" cubes
- 80 g / 2 cups (packed) baby spinach
- 1/2 cup cashews , unsalted (roasted or raw) (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp each salt + pepper
- 1 tbsp garam masala (Note 3)
- 2 tbsp curry powder (mild or spicy, your choice) (Note 4)
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp paprika (sweet, or hot for spice!)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- Coriander/cilantro leaves, whole or chopped
- Chopped cashews (optional)
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Heat oil in a deep skillet or pot over medium high heat. Add onion, garlic and ginger, cook for 2 minutes until onion is a bit tinged with gold.
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Add Spices and stir for 1 minute - don't worry if it looks a bit dried out.
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Add coconut milk, passata and broth. Stir until incorporated.
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Add lentils and pumpkin. Bring to simmer then adjust heat so it's simmering energetically.
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Simmer for 10 minutes or until pumpkin is tender but not mushy, and sauce has thickened.
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Stir through baby spinach until wilted, then cashew nuts.
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Add salt and pepper last, adjusting to taste.
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Serve over rice, sprinkled with coriander and extra cashews, if using.
1. Crushed canned tomato can also be used here but doesn't yield the same smooth sauce. Use 3/4 cup.
2. Roughly chopped macadamia or pistachios would be a great sub. Otherwise, leave the cashews out and sprinkle generously with store bought fried shallots or onions (Asian section of supermarket), these are a great alternative for providing texture and added interest into the curry.
3. Garam Masala is a spice mix that is found in major supermarkets in Australia (Woolies, Coles etc) that is commonly used in Indian cooking. It smells like curry powder and is not spicy, if you buy it from standard supermarkets. If you get it from a speciality store, check the spiciness before using - you may wish to dial it back a bit.
4. I use Cloves of India (sold at supermarkets, spice section), mild or spicy. Any curry powder will be fine here because it's not intended to be a full blown authentic Indian curry.
5. The Formula: This recipe is all about the curry sauce, so feel free to use it for whatever you want to put in it. It makes about 3 1/2 cups of sauce which is enough for about 4 - 5 packed cups of "stuff".
Examples: 500g/1 lb chicken cut into bite size pieces (~2 1/2 cups) + 2 1/2 cups of chopped veggies of choice. Or 500g / 1 lb prawns / shrimp + 2 cups chopped sweet potato. Or 5 cups of veggies, chopped into bite size pieces. Or 1 can of beans (~2 cups) plus 3 cups of chopped veggies. Etc etc. 🙂
Stir throughs like spinach which wilts down to nothing is a freebie that doesn't count in the cups allowance, and similarly with a small amount of nuts.
Proteins (chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, fish and prawns/shrimp especially great) - brown first then remove (still raw inside ok), then proceed with recipe. Add it back in to finish cooking through / reheat. For beef and lamb, be sure to use a nice marbled cut and don't overcook, keep it juicy inside. You could also stir through shredded or chopped precooked meat.
Vegetables, add them into the sauce based on the cook time. The sauce needs 10 minutes to reduce / flavours to develop.
Legumes (beans) - whether canned or cooked dried beans, add them in as soon as the sauce is mixed and simmer for the full time so they soak up some flavour.
Dried lentils (2/3 dried = 1 can drained) - use 2/3 cup dried and simmer in 3 cups of lightly salted water for 20 minutes or until tender but still firm (not mushy). Drain and use per recipe.
6. Nutrition per serving, assuming 5 servings. It's a pretty generous amount! Excludes rice. It could almost be a meal in itself.
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
LIFE OF DOZER
Yes, he even eats shampoo bubbles….
Made this two nights ago and it was perfect. Obviously the Garam Masala and curry powder I used weren’t the spicy variety as my two kids (6&4) loved it!
Will make again tonight but vary the main components to include chickpeas and sweet potato. Thanks again Nagi for a great recipe.
Jane.
I quartered the amounts of curry powder and garam masala ( the mix we use is quite hot), and kept everything else spicewise the same. Substituted silverbeet for the spinach. Came out as a delicious curry that we’d rate as a “medium” on the spice scale. Hot enough to keep the adults happy and mild enough for the teenager to enjoy it too. The under 12s voted it too hot to consider eating and opted for burritos instead.
I would not have wanted to try it with the spice quantities listed! But then these things are incredibly variable – I know the garam masala we use from the local spice shop is orders of magnitude hotter than the supermarket blend I used to use.
This one’s a keeper.
Hi Sandy! I’m glad you enjoyed this! And yes, it’s the same with curry powder, it ranges from mild to SUPER hot so I’m glad you knew your garam masala was extra spicy! The supermarket stuff I use is not spicy at all 🙂 N xx
I should have done that. I used the quantities given and it was so hot my husband refused to eat it. Am currently cooking pasta with peas and bacon instead. I will be eating vegie curry for the next week! It was a standard Keen’s Curry powder and Masterfoods garam masala – so nothing over the top. 🙁
I Nagi, I freeze jars straight form the stores of onion and garlic powder. They stay lovely and powdery, instead ion turning into hard lumps after a few weeks in my humid kitchen. I used to have to throw them away after a while, as they also smelt a bit weird once they had deteriorated. Now they keep for ever.
OMG YOU MAU HAVE JUST CHANGED MY LIFE! I am constantly scraping onion and garlic powder and passing through a sieve!!!
Secrets of restaurant meals at home. I came across this little book a couple of couple of years ago, having always been on the search for that lovely Indian restaurant quality food. To my utter astonishment, I discovered that a basic sauce is made that covers nearly all dishes, ( this was no surprise, as this must clearly be the case, ) but my astonishment came on finding out the sauce is a BOILED sauce: Onions, garlic, ginger , water, blended until smooth and then boiled. I made this sauce, ready to toss it out as probably revolting, but NO, this sauce it is just great when subsequently used as the basis for a curry, and no FAT/OIL.
Can be frozen.
Book is called The Curry Secret, by Kris Dhillon. A very small book from
http://www.littlebrown.co.uk. and was originally published 1989
It has a companion: Chinese Cookery Secrets, which I haven’t yet got. I have a feeling that is not the ingredients that make the difference but secret techniques.
NO WAY!!! NO WAY!!!! (She is screeching!) I have GOT to find this book!!!
With the The Curry Secret- Indian Restaurant Cookery at Home book, I didn’t purchase Kris Dhillon’s latest book, The New Curry Secrets, as I wondered if it might have gone away from the original, so I bought her updated 2008 version. A small book , no pictures, but a REVELATION. I might be wrong of course, re her latest book.
i have now ordered Chinese Cookery Secrets by Deh-Ta- Hsiung via Book Depository. I can’t wait to see what this little book may reveal.
Did you know you can cook chicken portions straight from frozen in the pressure cooker? I experimented with 6 bone in chicken legs, added an extra 4 mins to the unfrozen cooking time, and what a miracle!! No defrosting, partial cooking in the microwave oven, etc. etc, just straight in the sauce and prepared spices as per recipe for my curry, and on the table in 10mins. Used quick release. You probably did know.
I know!!! Only with portions though 🙂 Not breast!
Angela, you just changed my life too!! I was always scraping out the bottom of the onion powder jar with a stainless steel chopstick!! THANK YOU!
My kitchen drawers have more space in them since I have disposed of: knitting needles, out sized metal skewers, screwdrivers of various sizes and a hammer to break up the lumps of concrete that I eventually managed to dislodge.
Changed my life too! I wonder why it took me so long.
Hi Nagi, could I brown some beef and use this recipe base with the coconut milk etc in the slow cooker?
Ive had to triple the recipe as I have a household of teens! I’ve also added shredded roastisery chicken to this (precooked for time saving). Can the sauce be frozen?
Would it work with low fat coconut milk, and can you freeze?
Great instructional post! A sound flavor base inmy humble opinion, which I believe will be anything but “meh”. Plan to give it a try this week.
Dozer looks like he enjoys eating shampoo or then again it could be meringue.
Hi Nagi, Thank you very much for sharing this awesome recipe. I’ve used this to make lamb with cashew curry. It was really yummy. Thank you 😊
Hi Nagi. .if I may add my dimes worth of comment, good of you to do a style of curry sauce that the timid folks will try. .being an Anglin indian from “The British Raj” we often use curry powder and add more spices 👍 if you live a hectic life making curry from scratch is time consuming. .I made the recipe and the extra I added was fresh coriander as a finish and garnish👍 BTW Dozer your Canadian Penn pal is going for shampoo and cut on thursday🐕 xo
Well, thank you Nagi! I’m going wild this coming weekend with your curry and white fish. Mmmmm! Yummo!
Thanks for another delicious looking dish, Nagi. May I ask you to clarify which paprika you use? I have smoked and sweet paprika but I think there is also hot paprika you can buy so which one do you use in your recipes? Thanks….
HI Corrie! Thanks for the question 🙂 I use sweet paprika for this one though hot would be great if you wanted a kick! I will update the recipe. N xx
Awesome, thank you!
Without really trying to beat a dead horse, would “smoked” paprika work or would it be too overpowering? I was in Budapest last week and picked up both “Smoked Hot” and “Hot” paprika since they are hard to find. My son has been asking for Indian curry so I’d really like to try out your recipe.
P.S. I currently have the Pork Char Siu marinating in the refrigerator. It’s been at least a decade since I’ve made this from scratch. I had my mother dig up her recipe which is similar to yours. I followed yours because of the Chinese 5 Spice… and then added 2 T. sake and 1 tsp. of garlic (from my mother’s). Taste test was delicious! Can’t wait! My younger son loves the Bao version so I’m looking for a bun recipe… any suggestions?
Hi Lori! To be honest, I would save it for other recipes where the smoked flavour will really add that extra something-something! Like – my Tikka Masala or Chicken Shawarma. Oooh, smoked paprika would be terrific in both of them! N xx
What spices are, typically, included in curry powder?
I’ve used this one before http://www.greatcurryrecipes.net/2012/02/16/how-to-make-your-own-quality-curry-powder/. 🙂 It was great – but I don’t use homemade on a day to day basis. N x
Thanks for a tasty sounding recipe. It seems to me that some of the spices you specify are included in many packaged curry powders (ex: cumin, turmeric,coriander). Half the fun of cooking is trying new recipes, but I’m wondering if most of your list of spices isn’t already included in “curry powder” or if you are telling us you just like more of those spices you call out separately? Sorry to sound picky. My initial thought was to use my curry powder and add hot paprika and call it good.
Hi Mark! You’re absolutely right, there are common spices. What I do is add spices to intensify the flavour of curry powder. Curry powders, at least generic ones from supermarkets, have a fairly “neutral” curry flavour. By itself, it is actually quite bland if you’re using it to make a curry (as opposed to just adding a tiny hint of curry flavour to something, like a dip). So all the other spices I takes the sauce from just OK (most would say “meh”!) to a really tasty curry with great depth of flavour like real Indian curries, rather than flat and boring 🙂
I have traveled Asia and cooked curries for some 40 years, and I have a suggestion for making things easier on the cook each time a dish is needed. Make a list of spices you would like in your mix, figure out a ratio of how much of each item, buy the spices, toast the spices, grind the mix, put into an appropriate size jar, and store in your freezer. I know that authentic recipes call for a different mix for each dish, but, as in this recipe, most of us can use different ingredients and enjoy it just the same. If someone is supposed to prepare the spices anew for each effort, I doubt curries will become a regular item. My current favorite is made up of 20 different spices, put together about once every 6-8 months.
PS: Even in a dry curry, blooming the spice mixture in a little oil is a good thing.
100% agreed! 🙂 N xx
I would love a great homemade curry. I’ve tried so many store bought from different places, only to have most taste like dirt or paper bag😒
Really hope you try this one! It tastes amazing even though it’s much easier than other “serious” curries on my website! N xx
FREEZER!!!! So this keeps freshly ground spices fresh?? Fred, you may have changed my life!!!
Well, I doubt it would work with an Indian grandmother, but it works for me. I even put one of those little bags of drying agent in the jar.
Now THAT is another genius idea!!!!
Hello Nagi, we love your recipes at my home, thanks for sharing!!!
Could you tell me how many dry lentils I should cook to equal one canned? I happen to have a couple varieties of dry lentils on hand but none canned and want to try this recipe, many thanks!
I tried to scan the recipe to find that information, I hope I didn’t miss it. and waste your time asking
Hi LibranFlight!! Sure thing – just added into the notes 🙂 Lentils triple in volume so you’ll need 2/3 of dried lentils, simmer in 3 cups of lightly salted water for 20 – 25 minutes until tender but still firm, not mushy. Drain then use per recipe! N xx
Every time I’ve made a curry with just dry spices I’ve been disappointed. Always meh tasting. So please forgive me for being just a tiny bit skeptical of your claims for this recipe! But I’ve tried a bunch of your other recipes and they’re all great so I’ll trust you and try it out sometime soon.
Be skeptical Amelia! I promise you, “meh” is a word I fear when it comes to my recipes 🙂 If you try this, I’d love to know what you think! N xx