Curry Chicken Drumsticks With Chickpeas is an authentic dinner using pantry ingredients! Plus the kids will love getting their own drumstick with their rice and veggies.
I know what you’re thinking when it comes to real-deal-authentic Indian food made at home…no way! However, I’m here to tell you this is loads easier than you can even imagine. It’s as easy as blending the flavors in the food processor and cooking it all together. You can do that!
In a few simple steps you’ve suddenly made a fresh curry paste from simple pantry items. Brown some chicken drumsticks (that adds delicious caramelized flavor, read below), stir in some onions and sweet potatoes then simmer. Simmer, simmer, simmer, DONE! All you need is some cooked rice and naan bread (I picked my naan up in the freezer section of the store thank you very much!).
I don’t like dinners that take forever. I use my cooking smarts to make shortcuts, and even though I love pre-made sauces and packaged foods to streamline things, we all can take three extra minutes every once in a while to use whole foods. I mix it up. I’m not a purist. But when I can create a delicious recipe like curry chicken drumsticks using so many fresh ingredients, I’m all about the real deal!
I made my curry paste, in the food processor in just a few minutes. I love the addition of fresh ginger and honey for sweetness. I found red chilies, but if you don’t see them at the store, simply use a jalapeño. Remember to scrape out the seeds and white pith so it’s not too spicy! I really like the chili flavor, but the seeds can make it too hot. If you’d like, leave the chili out of the paste and use it as garnish.
Curry Chicken Drumsticks With Chickpeas, sweet potatoes, onions and spices, is an approachable, actually easy, and super authentic Indian meal. You’ll impress yourself, let alone your guests!
The extra onion and bell pepper get sliced and combined with a sweet potato. These go into the pan after the chicken is brown. Browning the chicken is such an important step. It doesn’t take too long but makes the drumsticks look pretty; not only that, it adds caramelized flavor to the dish. All the browned bits left in the pan when the chicken is done get picked up by the veggies as they soften.
I made my rice while the chicken and veg simmered, heated my naan bread and set the table. Just for kicks I added a teaspoon of whole fennel seeds to the rice while it cooked. They soften and give a sweet crunch to the rice. But no need to do this if you’re cooking for kids; I know how kids love their plain white rice!
When the sauce has thickened a bit and the chicken is cooked through I served the entire dish with dollops of yogurt (sprinkled with curry powder for good looks), fresh cilantro and some more red chilies. Feel free to dish up individual portions in the kitchen too. It’s a complete, authentic Indian dinner, with saucy goodness that sinks into your rice and melts in your mouth.
- 2 medium onions
- 2 yellow bell peppers
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 inch piece of ginger peeled
- 1 fresh red chili or jalapeño optional
- ½ cup packed cilantro leaves
- 1 cube chicken bouillon
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons curry powder or gharam masala
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 sweet potato
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 8 chicken drumsticks
- 2½ cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons tomato paste
- 1 14- oz can chickpeas
- 4 cups cooked Basmati rice
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- Naan bread
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For the Curry Paste: cut one onion and one bell pepper into pieces and put in a food processor; reserve the other onion and pepper. To the food processor add the garlic, ginger, chili (scrape out the seeds to keep things mild), cilantro, chicken bouillon, honey, turmeric, coriander, curry powder and salt. Blend until the mixture is a paste.
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For the Chicken and Chickpeas: cut the reserved onion in wedges and the bell pepper in thick slices. Peel and cut the sweet potato into 1 inch pieces; set aside with the onion and pepper.
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Heat a large casserole or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil then the drumsticks. Cook until golden on all sides, about 10 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove chicken to a plate, leaving the pan on the heat. Add another tablespoon oil with the onion, pepper and sweet potato. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes.
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Add the Curry Paste, chicken broth, tomato paste and chickpeas and stir well. Add the chicken back to the pan (arrange the drumsticks in a circle if you like), cover the pan, reduce heat to a simmer and cook 30 minutes.
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After 30 minutes add 1 cup of water and simmer about another 15 minutes until the sauce has thickened and vegetables are soft.
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Serve the curry with rice, yogurt, naan bread if desired and garnish with extra cilantro.
While we’re on the international kick with these curry chicken drumsticks, check out my Asian-inspired chocolate chip cookies! (Hint, the secret ingredient is a sushi staple, but makes the cookies oh, so good!)
For brunch I also went spanning the world for everyone’s favorite: a Dutch Baby Pancake with lemon and berries.
Recipe, propping and food styling by Tara Teaspoon. Photography by Ty Mecham. Originally published on IHeartNaptime.net.
