You are going to love this air fryer chicken rezala. So easy and nowhere near as much mess.
Making homemade chicken rezala like they do at curry houses is great. This air fryer chicken rezala is a nice cheat though. You can literally cook it up on a whim.
Just in case you’re wondering, you really can cook curries completely in your air fryer and the flavour is amazing. This is my air fryer chicken rezala but you could use any protein of your choice such as beef, lamb or paneer. The cooking times may vary but you’ll see when you read this recipe with step by step photos that it is a great way of cooking this famous curry house style curry.
You will need a small cake tin or another metal pot that fits into the cooking chamber of your air fryer.
About this air fryer chicken rezala recipe.
Many people are getting into the air fryer craze at the moment. Air frying can be a lighter way of cooking but it doesn’t need to be if you want a curry closer to what you find at restaurants.
In this air fryer chicken jalfrezi recipe, I give you both options.
Other good reasons why people are using air fryers more often is that they are much more economical to use than a stove or conventional oven and you can cook with a lot less mess.
The information you find below will demonstrate how you can use your eco friendly air fryer to make this amazing rezala in your air fryer. I spent a lot of time getting this just right. I bet you can’t taste the difference between this and more traditional ways of cook the curry!
What do you serve with air fryer chicken rezala?
Whatever sounds good to you but you might like to try my new air fryer Basmati rice or air fryer naans.
Can you work ahead?
Yes! You can prepare this air fryer curry up to 3 days ahead of time if you want to. As it sits in the fridge, the flavours will develop and it will be even better when you serve it.
You can also work in stages. Air fry the onions, bell pepper and garlic and ginger paste and place it in the fridge until you are ready to complete the curry, for example.
If you like, you can make and blend the sauce or pre-cook the chicken. Whatever is most convenient for you, do it.
Although the recipe calls for raw chicken that is then cooked in your air fryer, I like to use air fryer tandoori chicken tikka for this recipe. That too can be cooked ahead of time.
What do you use as a pan for air frying a curry?
All you need is a metal cake tin or another metal pan that fits into the cooking basket of your air fryer.
Small cake tins are already popular accessories for air frying casseroles and stews. I use this one <– Affiliate link, which comes in several sizes. For my air fryer I use a 7 inch diameter pan but you will want to measure your basket before placing an order.
If you have another suitably sized metal pan, that will work too.
Although silicone pans have their air fryer uses, I don’t recommend them for cooking curry as they do not get hot enough to cook a curry quickly.
Can this chicken rezala be made in any air fryer?
Yes. I have personally tried three different air fryers and each worked fine.
I personally have a Ninja Foodie FledDrawer Air Fryer (<– Affiliate Link) which I love. It has two cooking chambers so I can air fry two different things at once which greatly reduces the cooking time.
I have used smaller air fryers with fantastic success. The cooking time below is for an air fryer with a single cooking chamber so if you have two or more, you will be able to cook these curries faster.
Safety notice.
Air fryers were not developed to cook curries, soups and stews. You should never heat only water or stock in an air fryer.
As the liquid comes to a simmer, it can splatter and also steam. This can ruin your air fryer and/or make a mess. It can also be a fire hazard.
This air fryer chicken jalfrezi recipe was developed with this in mind. You don’t need a lot of sauce for a curry that serves 1 to 2 people.
Heat the sauce for 10 minutes. It will probably still not be boiling hot and spitting. Keep a close eye on it though as you continue to cook. If the curry begins to steam or spit, cover it tightly with foil or a lid to finish cooking.
How long can you store this air fryer chicken rezala in the fridge?
You should be able to safely store this curry, covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.
If you have a reheat option on your air fryer, you can reheat the curry that way. You could also simply air fry again at about 200°C/400°F until hot. That or throw it in your microwave.
Can you freeze this curry?
Yes! It will freeze really well for up to 3 months.
To reheat it, just let it defrost and reheat as you would the refrigerated curry above.
Step by step photographs.
Get all of your ingredients measured out and ready before you start cooking. It’s easier that way.
Preheat your air fryer to 200°C/400°F. Spray the basket with oil spray and place the chicken inside to cook for 10 minutes. Turn halfway through the cook. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Place the sliced onions and bell pepper in a mixing bowl and stir in the salt and 1 tbsp oil. You can coat with oil spray instead of adding the oil.
Preheat your air fryer to 200°C/400°F. Pour the onions and bell pepper into the basket and air fry for 10 minutes. Spread the garlic and ginger paste over it all for the two minutes of cooking.
Pour these fried veggies into a mixing bowl and add the passata and ground spices. Then stir in the stock.
Blend these ingredients until smooth. You can use a countertop blender or stick blender for this.
Heat some oil in a cake tin or other suitable metal pan. Fry the chopped onions for 3 minutes and then add the chopped chillies to fry for 2 more minute or until soft.
Pour in the prepared curry sauce and air fry for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, the top of the sauce will be darker. That is flavour so stir it in. Add the pre-cooked chicken and cook for 5 more minutes.
Stir in the cream, butter, garam masala and kasoori methi and heat for a further 2 minutes or until hot enough to serve. Season with salt to taste.
squeeze in lemon juice to taste and garnish with the chopped coriander (cilantro).
So good! Enjoy.
If you like this air fryer chicken rezala recipe, you might like to try some of these air fryer recipes too.
Air Fryer Whole Tandoori Chicken
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Air Fryer Chicken Rezala
This air fryer chicken rezala will get you amazing results. It really does taste like a traditional pan cooked jalfrezi but without all the oil splatter and mess. You will need a metal cake tin or other metal pan that fits into your air fryer. I use this one. <--Affiliate Link. This recipe cooks everything from scratch but for more flavour, use my air fryer chicken tikka instead of raw chicken and add it when instructed in the recipe. If you have an air fryer with two cooking chambers, you can cook two things at once which will reduce the cooking time by about 20 minutes.
Ingredients
- 300g (10.5oz) chicken thighs or breasts cut into bite sized pieces or tandoori chicken tikka
- FOR THE SAUCE
- 3 tbsp rapeseed (canola) oil or ghee (optional) or oil spray
- 2 medium onions (approx. 250g/9oz), thinly sliced
- ½ red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp garlic and ginger paste
- 125ml (1/2 cup) unseasoned passata or tinned (canned) chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp curry powder or mixed powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder (more or less to taste)
- 250ml ( ½ cup) chicken stock, stock cube stock is fine
- TO FINISH
- 2 – 3 green finger chillies, finely chopped
- ½ onion, finely chopped
- 70ml (1/4 cup) single cream
- ¼ tsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp coriander (cilantro), finely chopped, plus more to garnish
- 1 tbsp cold butter from the fridge
- Salt to taste
- Juice of one lemon, more or less to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer up to 200°C/400°F. If using plain or marinated raw chicken, spray the basket with oil spray and place the chicken in it. If you’re using pre-cooked chicken tikka you can skip this step. Cook the chicken for 10 minutes, turning halfway through until lightly charred and almost cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Place the sliced onions, bell pepper and salt into a bowl with one tablespoon oil. If you are on a reduced calorie diet, you could just spray these veggies with oil spray to coat. Mix well with your hands and then pour it all into the cooking basket to air fry for 10 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- Spread the garlic and ginger paste over it all to cook for the last two minutes. Then pour it all into a mixing bowl and add the passata, mixed powder or curry powder, Kashmiri chilli powder and stock. Blend it using a stick blender or countertop blender until smooth. Set aside.
- Now place a cake tin or other suitable metal pan inside your air fryer basket and add 2 tablespoons oil. If you are on a reduced calorie diet, simply spray the chillies and chopped onion to coat. If using oil, it should take about two minutes to heat up. Add the chopped onions and fry for 3 minutes. Then stir in the chillies and continue frying for a further 2 minutes to soften.
- Pour the blended sauce into the pan and stir well to combine. Air fry for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, the sauce will be quite hot if you added oil and getting nice and warm if you didn’t. The top will be a darker brown and that is flavour. Stir it in.
- Add the cooked chicken and cook for a further 5 minutes or until hot enough to serve.
- To finish, swirl in the cream, garam masala, coriander (cilantro) and butter and cook for a further 2 minutes or until the sauce is hot and the chicken cooked/heated through. Season with salt to taste and garnish with a little chopped coriander and even a little more butter if you like. Squeeze in the lemon juice and serve.
Notes
Cooking Sauces in an Air Fryer Safely.
Air fryers were designed as a substitute to cook crispy food that is similar to deep fried food. They were not designed to make sauces or soups.
The first few times you cook a curry like this in your air fryer, it is important to ensure that the sauce is not spitting or that there is too much steam. This could get messy and the water droplets could also be a fire hazard.
This is the reason why I developed this recipe to serve 1 to 2 people as the pan is usually less than half full. I have cooked at least a hundred curries this way in my air fryer without any issues. It takes at least 10 minutes for the sauce to heat up so spitting and steam is not an issue. If you find that it is with your air fryer, be sure to covered the pan tightly with a lid or foil which will sove that issue. You might need to cook a little longer for it to heat up but it's better safe than sorry.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 797Total Fat: 49gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 32gCholesterol: 172mgSodium: 1873mgCarbohydrates: 47gFiber: 7gSugar: 21gProtein: 48g