THE CURRY GUY

Low Fat Chicken Ceylon

By 4 Comments

Curry House Style Chicken Ceylon

Lighter chicken ceylon still has all the flavour of the full fat version.

Delicious chicken Ceylon curry doesn’t have to be high in fat!

I am a big fan of chicken Ceylon curry. I usually order it when I go out for a curry along with a few other curry house favourites. The problem with the curry is, it is usually quite high in calories. 

While writing my new cookbook ‘The Curry Guy Light’, I learned so much about lowering the fat in my cooking. I used to think I was quite good at it but working with a nutritionist while writing the book was a real eye-opener. 

Working with her, I managed to make this chicken ceylon curry even lighter but you’ll have to wait for the book to try that recipe. 

For now, give this version a try. It is one heck of a lot lighter than the chicken Ceylon curries you can expect to find when going out to an Indian restaurant. 

As the name implies, this curry is packed with the flavours of Ceylon or modern day Sri Lanka. 

Using all those delicious spices, tasty coconut (careful with this as it’s high in saturated fat) and of course curry leaves makes this a curry recipe you can count on to deliver. 

Making chicken ceylon

Temper the whole spices and curry leaves in the oil.

Making chicken Ceylon

Add the garlic and ginger paste and chillies, followed by the coconut flour.

Making Chicken Ceylon

Stir in the tomato puree, coconut milk and just enough base sauce to make a runny paste.

Making chicken Ceylon

Add the rest of the base sauce and bring it all to a rolling simmer.

Making chicken Ceylon

Add the chicken, ground spices and low fat coconut milk and mango chutney.

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Make this low fat chicken Ceylon curry! You’ll be glad you did. 

It may not be my lightest version of this recipe but it is a lot lighter than most curry house versions. Try my low fat base curry sauce and low fat chicken tikka in this recipe.

Yield: 1 - 2

Low Fat Chicken Ceylon

Low Fat Chicken Ceylon
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • ½ tsp black mustard seeds
  • 1 star anise
  • 1 x 2.5cm (1 inch) piece of cinnamon stick
  • 2 green cardamom pods – lightly smashed
  • 5 fresh or frozen curry leaves
  • 2 tsp garlic and ginger paste
  • 1 - 2 green bird’s-eye chillies, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp coconut flour
  • 1 1/2 tbsp finely chopped coriander stalks
  • 70ml tomato purée
  • [300ml low cal base curry sauce
  • ½ tsp Kashmiri hot chilli powder
  • 2 tsp mixed powder or curry powder
  • 1 tbsp tandoori masala
  • 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • [200g chicken breast cut into bite sized pieces or low fat tandoori chicken tikka
  • 200ml lite coconut milk
  • 1/2 tsp dried fenugreek (methi) leaves
  • 2 tsp smooth mango chutney
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala (see page xx)
  • 1 tbsp freshly chopped coriander, to finish
  • Salt

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil over medium high heat in a Balti pan or frying pan. When visibly hot, add the mustard seeds. When they begin to crackle, add the star anise, cardamom pods, cinnamon stick and the curry leaves and temper them in the oil for about 20 seconds. Now stir in the garlic and ginger paste and the chopped chillies and fry for a further 20 seconds.
  2. Add the coconut flour and coriander stalks and give it all a good stir. The pan will be looking a bit dry so add the tomato puree and a little of the base sauce until you have a thick paste. Simmer for about 20 seconds and then add the remaining base sauce.
  3. Allow this to come to a bubbly simmer and then stir in the chicken, coconut milk, chilli powder, mixed powder/curry powder, tandoori masala and the black pepper. Stir to combine and let it all bubble for about 3 - 5 minutes until the tandoori chicken is heated through or in the case of raw chicken cubes simmer until cooked through.
  4. To finish, add the dried methi and mango chuntey. Stir it all nicely into the sauce. Squeeze the lime juice over the top, sprinkle with the garam masala and garnish with the chopped coriander to serve.

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© Dan Toombs
Cuisine: British/Indian / Category: Main

 

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Comments

    • Hi Paul

      Indian food is all about those layers of flavour. In the low fat recipes, I am telling people they can cook the chicken from raw for ease. I have added a low fat tandoori chicken recipe to my site which will make the curries even better. I’m also going to include a pre-cooked chicken recipe in the new book but don’t want that extra step to stop people making the recipes. For me… I always pre-cook the meat in some way. Thanks, Dan

      Reply

  2. A huge thank you. I sent all my Indian cookery books to charity 15 years ago; in despair that I couldn’t create a decent curry. That was ok while we were living in suburbia and could get deliveries. Then we moved to the middle of deepest, dankest Kent with only one (excellent) delivery service. They fell foul of the HO in August and we were left bereft, until I found your recipes . I got your books (although I tend to work from the website on kitchen proof laminated copies) and I’ve worked through Korma, Shasni, Passanda, Chaat, Methi, and more, but this Ceylon really hits the spot. I’ve even begun to tweak the heat levels to our preference.
    Have you come across Nilgiri / Neel Geeree / Nil Giree the minty green one? And have you considered adding it to your repertoire?

    Reply

    • Hi Nadge

      Thank you very much. Great to hear you are enjoying the recipes. I’ve heard of Niliri, the district in Tamil Nadu and have tried many recipes from that area. No specific dish called Nilgiri / Neel Geeree / Nil Giree though. Is there a dish I need to try? Perhaps from a restaurant you know? Thanks, Dan

      Reply

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