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British Indian Restaurant Style Pre-Cooked Chicken

May 30, 2013 By Dan Toombs 67 Comments

Pre-cooked chicken not only makes curry better but tastier too.

Pre-cooked chicken for British Indian restaurant style curries

Pre-cooked chicken in its delicious cooking stock.

Why pre-cook your chicken?

Pre-cooked chicken, meat and veggies play in the preparation of British Indian restaurant style meals. Pre-cooking the chicken until tender not only makes cooking in Indian restaurants faster but tastier too.

This is very important with tougher cuts of meat like lamb, goat, beef and pork but chicken and other meats benefit too.

I like to vary my recipes for pre-cooked chicken and meat. I change them often but at the end of the day it’s all done to give the meat that famous British Indian restaurant flavour.

This is done not only for flavour but speed. If you have your pre-cooked chicken and its stock ready, you can whip up curry house style curries in minutes!

Think about it… A delicious chicken curry whenever you want it for much less than the local takeaway!

About this recipe.

I pre-cook chicken in several different ways. So if one of my curry house recipes calls for pre-cooked chicken, you could use any of these methods.

For tandoori style chicken, I marinate the chicken pieces in a yogurt marinade for up to 48 hours and then cook it fast in my tandoor oven, home oven or on the barbecue.

The yogurt works as a tenderiser for the chicken meat. The end result can served as is or it can be added to curries such as tandoori chicken tikka masala. You can check out my ‘go-to’ tandoori style chicken tikka recipe here.

The other way I prepare chicken is to simmer it in a fragrant broth for about 30 minutes until cooked through. This is the following recipe. Cooking chicken like this gives the chicken a much lighter flavour and softer texture.

It’s a good way to cook chicken for curries such as chicken korma where I lighter look and flavour is usually preferred.

You could use either method for your curries. Use the marinated tandoori chicken tikka to make tandoori chicken tikka masala.

Use the stewing method with small bite sized chicken pieces (tikka) to make chicken tikka masala. I think you get the idea… Do you want chicken korma or tandoori chicken tikka korma? The choice is all yours.

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Yield: 8

British Indian Restaurant Style Pre-Cooked Chicken

British Indian Restaurant Style Pre-Cooked Chicken

You can cook any cut of chicken this way but the most popular way is to cook chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces. I like to cook chicken thighs on the bone for even more awesome flavour.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 kilo (2 lbs.) skinned chicken pieces
  • 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 5 cardamom pods
  • 10 black peppercorns
  • 1 inch piece of cassia bark or cinnamon stick
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 2 large onions - finely chopped
  • 400ml chopped tomatoes
  • 3 bayleaves
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • Salt

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil over medium high heat until very quite hot but not yet smoking.
  2. Add the whole spices and the bay leaves and stir continuously so that the spices don't burn. Watch carefully, you want the oil to take on the flavour of the spices but you don't want them to brown.
  3. Add the chopped onions and stir to combine.
  4. Continue stirring from time to time for about ten minutes until the onions are soft and translucent.
  5. Add just a bit of salt. This will release some of the excess water from the onions.
  6. Now add the turmeric and mix it in.
  7. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and cover the pot to let all the flavours get to know each other.
  8. After about ten more minutes, add the chicken pieces and just enough water to cover the chicken.
  9. Cover again and simmer until the chicken is cooked through.
  10. Remove from the heat to cool for use in your curries.

Notes

The cooled chicken can be stored in the fridge for up to three days or frozen.

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Filed Under: Prepared Ingredients

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Comments

  1. Fin says

    September 7, 2014 at 9:28 am

    Hi Dan, The recipe states that you need to add chopped tomatoes but the quantity is not included in the ingredients list. Can you advise?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      September 19, 2014 at 8:12 am

      Hi Fin

      All fixed now. Thanks for noticing.

      Dan

      Reply
  2. Jo says

    September 12, 2014 at 10:44 am

    Hi Dan – you have chopped tomatoes in your instructions but not on the recipe list! Is it tinned tomatoes or fresh.
    Going to be making one of your curries tomorrow.
    They look delicious.

    Kind Regards

    Jo Richardson

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      September 19, 2014 at 8:06 am

      Hi Jo

      You can use either. In the summer I use fresh. In the colder months I go for tinned.

      Thanks
      Dan

      Reply
  3. Roger says

    October 14, 2014 at 9:34 am

    Hi Dan

    Do you drain the chicken once it’s cooked or just leave it in the stock.

    Thanks

    Roger

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 8, 2014 at 8:50 am

      Hi Roger

      Don’t through away the stock. It has a lot of flavour. Use the chicken pieces in your curry of choice. Then if you want to add a little more flavour, top up your curry with a few spoonfuls of the chicken cooking stock.

      Cheers
      Dan

      Reply
  4. sam says

    October 15, 2014 at 1:16 pm

    When you say the cooled chicken can be kept in the fridge or frozen can the sauce also be frozen for a week or so to use in the next curry?
    Thanks Sam

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 8, 2014 at 8:49 am

      Hi Sam

      Sauce and chicken both freeze well.

      Cheers
      Dan

      Reply
  5. Des says

    October 21, 2014 at 9:17 am

    Hi Dan,
    Do you use green or black cardamoms?
    Assume the broth is discarded once chicken is cooked ?
    Regards,
    Des.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 8, 2014 at 8:43 am

      Hi Des

      Black cardamoms have a stronger – smokier flavour. If you love cardamom, I would suggest using them. Green will do fine though. Don’t through away the broth. It is great added to chicken curries. A couple spoonfuls at the end of cooking will take your curries to the next level.

      Cheers
      Dan

      Reply
  6. Ash says

    October 26, 2014 at 8:16 pm

    Hi Dan

    Just trying out your Jalfrezi recipe and now i’m preparing my pre-cooked chicken. One question, when the chicken is cooked through, do i only use the chicken from this pre-cooked chicken recipe, or do i throw it all into my Jalfrezi when i make it?

    Hope that makes sense!
    Cheers!

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 8, 2014 at 8:31 am

      Hi Ash

      I’m not sure I understand but you could use all of the chicken or just some of it. Usually I just use a few pieces if I’m cooking for myself. If cooking for four or more, the whole pre-cooked chicken recipe can be used.

      Cheers
      Dan

      Reply
      • Vince says

        August 12, 2015 at 6:56 pm

        I think that Ash is asking if just the chicken pieces go into the final curry recipe, or the chicken pieces + the stock. Just the chicken pieces, I imagine, and topping up the final curry with a couple of tablespoons of the stock. Does anyone have any tips for draining the stock, especially separating the chicken pieces from the ‘lumpy’ bits of the stock i.e. the whole spices and tomato chunks?

        Reply
  7. Markus says

    February 21, 2015 at 9:46 am

    Hey Dan!

    Thanks for sharing your awesome recipes! The Pre-Cooked Chicken really has a much nicer texture!

    Best,
    Markus

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      March 5, 2015 at 1:23 pm

      Thanks Markus. Glad you enjoyed the recipe.

      Dan

      Reply
  8. John - UK says

    March 12, 2015 at 4:01 pm

    Hi – Is this the same sauce to pre-cook beef etc or is there a variant? Thanks!!

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      July 21, 2015 at 6:46 am

      Hi John

      It’s slightly different but you could cook beef, lamb etc in this recipe with good results. Just be sure to stew it longer as it takes longer to become tender.

      Thanks
      Dan

      Reply
  9. dave says

    May 4, 2015 at 1:46 pm

    You say simmer chicken until cooked through. How long to cook 500 grms chopped into 1 inch cubes approx.? Is it possible to turn it into rubbery in texture if stewed for to long. As chicken cooks quickly I assume 5 -10 minutes.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 4, 2015 at 10:21 am

      Hi Dave

      Just cook it until cooked through. About ten minutes should do. I often cook it and then turn off the heat to let the flavours get to know each other. I’ve never found this recipe to produce a rubbery texture so I think you’re okay.

      thanks
      Dan

      Reply
  10. Graeme Baker says

    May 16, 2015 at 12:43 pm

    HI Dan

    Can I cook the chicken in my slow cooker? If so do you know what sort of time I should leave it in there for?

    Thanks
    Graeme

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 4, 2015 at 10:26 am

      Hi Graeme

      I never use a slow cooker for my cooking so I’m not going to be much help there. Still, I see know reason why you couldn’t cook it in a slow cooker. The end result will be different to Indian style cooking though. Hope this helps.

      Dan

      Reply
  11. Vince says

    August 12, 2015 at 11:19 am

    What kind of cooking vessel should be used? Frying pan? Saucepan? It’s quite a lot of chicken, so I’m thinking something large.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 4, 2015 at 8:45 am

      Hi Vince

      You’re right there. I use a big pot usually as I often double the recipe and freeze it. You could also use a large wok. Good luck.

      Dan

      Reply
  12. Bill Connors says

    October 12, 2015 at 10:44 pm

    hi Dan
    just got your eBook and I can’t wait to have a go as you make it easy to follow your recipes. Its great of you to share.The book is first class.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 13, 2015 at 6:59 pm

      Hi Bill

      Thank you very much for purchasing my ebook. Be sure to let me know if you have any recipe questions.

      Thanks
      Dan

      Reply
  13. Steve Cargill says

    November 14, 2015 at 11:22 am

    Hi Dan,

    Thanks for the wealth of knowledge you are sharing. Would it be possible to cook the chicken in the restaurant curry sauce and obtain the same results?

    Regards Steve

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 15, 2015 at 10:13 am

      Hi Steve

      Many chefs do this. It works really well. This recipe is simply an alternative but if you have some curry sauce you can use it instead.

      Dan

      Reply
  14. Jon says

    November 27, 2015 at 8:48 am

    Loving the recipes! Thank you so much. Quick question… My son usually orders a ‘korma, madras heat’ from our local restaurant. I am planning to try and recreate by adding some of your hot madras powder to this recipe. Do you think this will work, and if so, how much, and when would you suggest I add it?

    Thanks again.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 29, 2015 at 10:18 pm

      Hi Jon

      Adding Madras curry powder will help. You can add it whenever. Sometimes it’s a good idea to add a little at the beginning and then top it up at the end to achieve the right heat. You could also add freshly chopped green chillies. Good luck.
      Dan

      Reply
  15. Gary says

    March 24, 2016 at 10:55 am

    Hi Dan,

    What do you do with the lumpy bits left in the pre-cooked chicken? Can if me added to the curry or just kept with the broth for future use?

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      July 8, 2016 at 11:57 am

      Hi Gary

      It’s really up to you. I sometimes just leave them in the broth but the larger bits can definitely be added with the other meat. Hope this helps.

      Dan

      Reply
  16. Cal says

    May 18, 2016 at 2:52 am

    Hi Dan

    My flatmate is allergic to tomatoes. Do you have any suggestions for substitution in this recipe and your curry sauce recipe? Im hoping to make chicken sagawala!

    Thanks
    Cal

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      July 8, 2016 at 9:54 am

      Hi Cal

      I have used blueberries believe it or not to substitute tomatoes. It works!

      Dan

      Reply
  17. Jo Broomhall says

    June 20, 2016 at 10:50 am

    Hi Dan
    Once you have removed the chicken from the broth, if you freeze the broth can you then defrost it to use when you want to cook your next batch of chicken or should you make a fresh broth?

    Many thanks

    Jo

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      July 8, 2016 at 9:15 am

      Hi Jo

      You sure can. It will make a stronger stock which is really nice.

      Dan

      Reply
  18. Karolina says

    August 8, 2016 at 2:55 pm

    Hi . I have a problem with yogurt . Which I should use to curry ? I have tried few but still is something wrong . Chicken is very sour and weird . After 24 hrs marinated and then cooking is still really sour and not good . I have tried add sugar when I’m cooking chicken but you can still taste it.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      August 9, 2016 at 6:17 pm

      Hi Karolina

      For marinades I usually use plain Greek style yogurt as it is thicker and close to the hung yogurt they use in India. For curries, I use plain natural yogurt. This is much thinner and also doesn’t curdle as easily. Give these a try and good luck.

      Dan

      Reply
  19. Julian says

    October 10, 2016 at 10:27 am

    is the water cold or hot when you add it?

    Reply
    • Julian says

      October 10, 2016 at 10:28 am

      *hot

      Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 11, 2016 at 12:18 pm

      Hi Julian

      For ease, just add the water cold and then bring it to a simmer.

      Thanks,
      Dan

      Reply
  20. Steve says

    November 13, 2016 at 8:29 am

    Hi Dan, great website, I’m brand new to this and looking forward to trying your methods.

    What’s your opinion on Chicken Thigh meat in curries please?

    Thanks,
    Steve.

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 18, 2016 at 10:47 am

      Hi Steve

      Thank you. At most restaurants, breast meat is used as it looks better. To be honest though, I much prefer thigh meat cooked on or off the bone. There is much more flavour to thigh meat.

      Cheers,
      Dan

      Reply
  21. Del says

    March 22, 2017 at 8:03 pm

    Hi buddy ,

    My pre cooked chicken liquid always gets used twice ,
    After the first time I freeze , then defrost and bring to a rapid boil then down to a simmer and use again ! Never use a third time though ! I’m guessing this is acceptable lol . Del

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      March 27, 2017 at 11:47 am

      Sure is Del. Thank you. I do the same.

      Dan

      Reply
  22. tony says

    March 24, 2017 at 6:32 pm

    hi dan….how many times could i re-freeze and use, im guessing twice but thought id ask your expert advice.

    keep up the good work

    Tony

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      March 25, 2017 at 9:17 am

      Hi Tony

      I usually don’t refreeze anything. It is best to freeze in smaller amounts. Hope this helps.

      Thank you,
      Dan

      Reply
  23. Karen says

    April 27, 2017 at 8:39 am

    Hi Dan
    Can I prepare the precooked chicken in the pressure cooker or is it better to do it on the hob? If I can cook it in the pressure cooker , how long would I do it for?
    Many thanks

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      April 27, 2017 at 12:53 pm

      Hi Karen

      I do pressure cook some things but usually do the chicken on the hob. If chicken overcooks, it gets really stringy. If I were cooking in a pressure cooker (mine is one of the countertop models) I would start by cooking it for only about ten minutes and see how it looks. It just needs to be cooked through.

      Good luck,
      Dan

      Reply
  24. Martin says

    August 5, 2017 at 10:41 pm

    Hi Dan, loving your recipes and enjoying reading your book.

    re the precooked chicken. It seems like a lot of extra ingredients and expense.
    Does it really impart that much flavour to the chicken?

    What if I were to just simmer it in the curry sauce, Would it make much of a difference to the flavour of the dish?

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 17, 2017 at 10:08 pm

      Hi Martin

      That is definitely another way of doing it. Just add it to some base sauce. Sometimes I cook chicken from raw in the different sauces. That isn’t done often at restaurants but it works for home cooks. Thank you very much for picking up my book. I’m glad you are enjoying it.

      All the best,
      Dan

      Reply
  25. Paul says

    August 14, 2017 at 12:04 pm

    When using this chicken in a dish, I would probably have it frozen then defrost. How long should it be left to cook with the dish that I am making for that day? in the recipes, it just says add the chicken. How long would you put the prepared cooked chicken in with the dish?

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 17, 2017 at 10:06 pm

      Hi Paul

      The cooked chicken is usually added right at the end. For the pre-cooking, just cook it until it is just cooked through so that it doesn’t over cook when added to curries.

      Thanks,
      Dan

      Reply
  26. steve says

    October 12, 2017 at 12:10 pm

    Hi, can I just make this as curry sauce and mix it with meat when nedded. will it keep in the fridge

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      October 13, 2017 at 8:10 am

      Hi Steve

      You could do that but for best results, cook it with the meat as the meat give more flavour to the stock. It will keep in the fridge for about three days and also freezes well.

      Thanks,
      Dan

      Reply
      • steve says

        October 15, 2017 at 10:25 am

        Thanks Dan that’s great I will do that

        Reply
  27. Wes says

    January 22, 2018 at 10:43 pm

    I moved to back to the US in 2011 and thought I’d never be able to get a proper takeaway curry again. What’s written above is true! Most other indian recipes I’ve tried don’t create that same takeaway style dish, but this Korma recipe was spot on! Will definitely be buying the book. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      February 5, 2018 at 6:53 pm

      Hi Wes

      Thank you very much. I’m really glad you like the recipe and hope you enjoy the book too. The US edition is available on Amazon US for pre-order and will be published in April, 2018. 🙂

      Thanks,
      Dan

      Reply
  28. Anthony Mancini says

    March 27, 2018 at 2:50 pm

    Sorry for a really silly question but as I am quite new to cooking I need to check. If I was to pre-cook my chicken the day before for instance then add to the chosen curry sauce (which will then be dished up and eaten), will I be ok putting any left overs in fridge and warming back up (ensuring its piping hot) the next day ? I worry about reheating chicken etc.

    Thanks and your recipes are amazing

    Tony

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      April 30, 2018 at 1:05 pm

      Hi Anthony

      No problem. At least I do it all the time and I’ve never had any problems with it.

      Thanks,
      Dan

      Reply
  29. Mandy Moore says

    April 7, 2018 at 12:03 pm

    Hi Dan a quick question once you cook your chicken and save the stock do you sieve it threw all use all the stock as last time I sieve it through and just let the water stock not sure if that is correct all use all as a stock

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      April 30, 2018 at 6:41 am

      Hi Mandy

      Do whatever is convenient. As I make a lot of curries using the base sauce, I often add the sieved stock instead of or with water to make a base sauce that is just for chicken. I do the same with lamb. You could also just make the base stock to use in all curries with water and top up your chicken curries with a little of the chicken stock for flavour. One good way to do this is to reduce it down and then freeze it in ice cube trays. Just throw in a couple of stock ice cubes to add flavour.

      Thanks,
      Dan

      Reply
  30. Nick C says

    June 19, 2020 at 8:58 pm

    Hi mate, I’ve made the precooked chicken and stock I was just wondering if I’m supposed to siv the stock and just keep the liquid or keep the lot and fish out the whole spices?

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      June 23, 2020 at 8:01 am

      Hi Nick
      Take the whole pieces of spices out and it should be fine to eat.
      Thanks
      Dan

      Reply
  31. Keith Johnston says

    August 27, 2020 at 12:01 pm

    Hi Dan, when you add tomato paste to a recipe are you referring to tomato purée?

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      August 27, 2020 at 3:46 pm

      Hi Keith
      Yes, tomato puree works well or the pasata you can buy from supermarkets in cartons.
      Thanks
      Dan

      Reply
  32. Lee says

    November 22, 2020 at 5:44 pm

    Hello Dan and Caroline

    I have seen different variations of your Pre cooked Chicken recipe. This one on your blog doesn’t include any garlic and ginger paste or coriander seeds. Have these been missed or can the recipe be used as is.

    Thanks

    Lee

    Reply
    • Dan Toombs says

      November 26, 2020 at 9:12 am

      Hi Lee
      Those ingredients tend to be added later according to the recipe instructions for the sort of curry you are making.
      Thanks
      Dan

      Reply

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