This delicious high protein chicken sweet potato curry is the TOP ABBEY’S KITCHEN RECIPE for a reason and a favourite gluten free one pot meal. Cozy, full of flavour, and the perfect meal for the winter.
I have a total soft spot for curry. When I first moved back to Toronto after high school, my family found an amazing Indian restaurant near by that became a family staple. The butter chicken was irresistible, the daal was so comforting and the naan bread just filled you with warmth. So naturally, I wanted to create my own version to enjoy at home!
I was on a mission to create my own high protein chicken sweet potato curry with all the aromatic flavour we know and love in a good curry recipe. To top it all off, this recipe is gluten friendly and can be made in only one pot make it super easy to whip up and clean up!
Table of contents
Why This Recipe Works
This is a healthy high protein chicken curry that is also gluten-free! It also only requires ONE POT! Seriously, when you’re a busy girl who loves to cook but hates to clean, one pot meals are KEY. I also love this recipe because it’s
- Dairy-free! We use coconut milk instead of cream
- Paleo-friendly
- Quick and easy to make! This dish comes together in around 30 minutes and only requires one pot to make.
- Sweet, smoky, spicy, and creamy, making it a household favourite!
Key Ingredients
Skinless Boneless Chicken Thighs – They are way more flavourful and tender for a curry than chicken breasts in my opinion.
Tomato Passata – Basically like tomato puree, this will be the base of your curry. You can find it in the same aisle as tomato sauce at the store.
Lite Coconut Milk – Blended with the tomatoes, it yields a really nice tangy creamy sauce.
Spices – The point of any curry is that you need a lot of spices. This one has garlic, ginger, cumin, curry, coriander, and cayenne pepper.
Cauliflower, Sweet Potatoes and Chard – My personal veggies of choice for this, but you can easily swap in carrots, broccoli, regular potatoes or kale.
Edamame – I like the extra protein but you can totally use baby frozen peas.
Garnish – We like to use pistachios, golden raisins, and cilantro as the garnish.
How To Make This Recipe
Step 1: Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat and add in one teaspoon of oil. Season the chicken with a pinch each of salt and pepper and sear on both sides until the chicken is golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Once golden brown, transfer to a plate and set aside.
Step 2: Return the pan to medium heat and add in the additional teaspoon of oil. Add the onion and sauté until it begins to soften, about 5-7 minutes. Add in the garlic, ginger, curry, coriander, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper to taste, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds, careful not to burn it.
Step 3: Next, add in the tomato sauce and the sweet potatoes, cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 7-8 minutes, until the sweet potato pieces begin to soften.
Step 4: Nestle in the chicken thighs into the pan then add the cauliflower, rainbow chard stems and then pour in the coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan with a lid and cook until the cauliflower and sweet potato softens, and the chicken thighs are cooked to an internal temperature of 165-175F or 73-80C, about 5-7 minutes.
Step 5: Remove the lid and stir in the frozen edamame and rainbow swiss chard leaves. Taste, and season with salt and pepper, if desired.
Step 6: Cover the pan with the lid again, until everything wilts down. Lay on a bed of quinoa, and garnish with golden raisins, crushed pistachios and coriander.
Expert Tips
Double check that the spices you purchase are gluten-free if you are making this for someone on a gluten-free diet. While the ingredients themselves are naturally gluten-free, sometimes spices can be tricky as it might be processed in a facility that uses gluten or the brand have added a little but of flour to them later to prevent caking.
If you want to thicken the chicken sweet potato curry to be thicker and you’re in a rush, you can add a dollop of tomato paste.
If your curry tastes bitter, add a bit of sugar to the recipe to balance the flavour. You can also throw in a bit of lemon juice or zest if you like things to be on the tangier side.
While I like to stick to the more traditional spices for this curry, you can also add a few teaspoons of turmeric for its anti-inflammatory properties or some cinnamon for some lovely added flavour.
My vegetables of choice are cauliflower, sweet potatoes, rainbow swiss chard and edamame. However, you can easily substitute in whatever you have on hand.
Recipe FAQs
You can! Because we use coconut milk, this freezes beautifully. Make sure you seal the chicken sweet potato curry tightly in an airtight container or freezer ziploc before freezing and it can last for up to three months.
You can! You can swap the chicken out for chick’n or tofu. You can also use chickpeas if you’d like!
This chicken sweet potato curry can last for up to four days in the fridge if you store it correctly. Like with the freezer, be sure to use an airtight container.
If you want it to be spicier, add additional cayenne pepper or use a spicy curry powder.
I serve this with quinoa but you can also serve this with rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, or whatever grain you’d like!
I would recommend holding back on adding the cayenne if you’re serving this to little ones who are picky. But it does have some natural sweetness so I know a lot of families who LOVE it.
Yes! It is Paleo-friendly and high in protein. You can also cut back on the carbs by serving this on cauliflower rice only.
More Recipes You May Like
Do you want more delicious curry recipes? Try these fan favourites!
- ACORN SQUASH VEGAN COCONUT LENTIL CURRY
- VEGAN YELLOW BEET COCONUT CURRY SOUP
- PERSIMMON GINGER CHICKEN ONE POT MEAL
- EASY SWEET POTATO CURRY SOUP
- BUTTERNUT SQUASH & LENTIL SOUP
What are your favourite ingredients for throwing into curry? Leave me a comment below, I would love to hear about some of your go-to additions!
Chicken Sweet Potato Curry (Healthy & Paleo friendly)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil plus 2 tsp divided
- 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs (fat trimmed)
- Pinch each of salt and pepper
- 1 small onion finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 tsp ginger grated
- 3 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tbsp dried coriander
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 1 bottle 680 mL tomato passata sauce/tomato puree
- 1 medium sweet potato peeled and diced into 1/3-inch cubes
- 1 can of lite coconut milk 400 ml can
- 1 medium head cauliflower cut into small florets (about 6-8 cups)
- 1 head rainbow chard ribs removed and cut into 3/4 inch (2 cm pieces and leaves thinly sliced into ribbons)
- 1/2 cup frozen shelled edamame optional
- Sea salt and cayenne pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup pistachios (crushed, if desired as garnish)
- 1/4 cup golden raisins if desired as garnish
- Cilantro if desired as garnish
- Quinoa optional (for serving)
Instructions
- Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat and add in one teaspoon of oil. Season the chicken with a pinch each of salt and pepper and sear on both sides until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Once golden brown, transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Return the pan to medium heat and add in the additional teaspoon of oil. Add the onion and sauté until it begins to soften, about 5-7 minutes. Add in the garlic, ginger, curry, coriander, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper to taste, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Next, add in the tomato sauce and the sweet potatoes, cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 7-8 minutes, until the sweet potato pieces begin to soften.
- Then nestle in the chicken thighs. Add the cauliflower, rainbow chard stems and then pour in the coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan with a lid and cook until the cauliflower and sweet potato softens, and the chicken thighs are cooked to an internal temperature of 165- 175 F, about 5-7 minutes.
- Remove the lid and stir in the frozen edamame and rainbow swiss chard leaves. Taste, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Cover the pan with the lid again, until everything wilts down.
- Lay on a bed of quinoa, and garnish with golden raisins, crushed pistachios and coriander.
Notes
Nutrition
Abbey Sharp is a Registered Dietitian (RD), regulated by the Ontario College of Dietitians. She is a mom, YouTuber, Blogger, award winning cookbook author, media coach specializing in food and nutrition influencers, and a frequent contributor to national publications like Healthline and on national broadcast TV shows.
Telkom University says
How do the flavors of chicken and sweet potato blend together in a curry?
Sikkim Tour Packages says
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Brand Management Company in Pandav Nagar says
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TessMarie says
Made this for the first time last night. Absolutely delicious! So much flavor, colors and textures. Teenagers, husband and I loved it so thank you Abbey. Had enough leftover I filled a 9×13 pan so we’ll freeze it for an easy dinner later. Only modification was frozen peas for edamame. I chopped my sweet potato and cauliflower smaller than yours but it still took quite a bit longer than 5-7 min to soften so I’ll factor that in next time. Maybe it’s our altitude here.
Michele Vande Steeg says
How many does this serve?
Abbey Sharp says
It serves 4
Kiara says
How much is a serving? 1 cup, 1/2 cup?
Abbey Sharp says
I’d say about a cup
Peg says
I LOVED this recipe! It is not as fast to make as noted in the recipe but it didn’t take 3 hours! I followed this to the letter except I added peas instead of the edamame, and I added some fresh cilantro at the end. This was so, so good! It will definitely make my regular rotation! Thanks! (I can’t click on the stars for some reason. I give it 5 stars!)
Abbey Sharp says
i am so so glad you loved it
Maria says
I just made this and let me just say- it took me over 3 hrs to make. If my family was waiting for this to be their dinner I would have left them waiting hungry at the table. Not to mention it’s SUUUUUUUUPER spicy! I wish you had added that (level of spice) when you were explaining the recipe and also the time issue. Browning a chicken thigh does not take 3 minutes on each side let me add. I am so disappointed by this recipe this is my first and last time making it.
Abbey Sharp says
I’m so sorry to hear that Maria. I will add a note about the cayenne, which can be very spicy. Browning the chicken thigh can also depend on the pan and heat you’re using. I will review the recipe, and again so sorry to hear you were disappointed.
Jessica says
In the video it looks like you used 4 thighs—is it 4 or 8?
Abbey Sharp says
I used 8!
Julie says
Made this in the slow cooker ( 4 hours on high ) and it was DELISH!! Omg! I used frozen peas instead of edamame and spinach instead of shard . I also used two sweet potatoes. My husband loved it too. Make it, you won’t regret it.
Abbey Sharp says
Thanks Julie! Great substitute ideas. So glad you enjoyed it 🙂