Slow cooker chicken curry with coconut milk and sweet potato

Walking in the door to a saucy chicken curry is like coming home to pure comfort. This creamy simmer sauce is ready to go, and sweet potatoes slide in extra nourishment.

Table of Contents Show

Ingredients
Tips for your perfect slow cooker sweet potato chicken curry
Equipment and ingredients
Reader Interactions
Can you use coconut milk in a slow cooker?
Is coconut milk Nice in curry?
Can you slow cook Indian curry?
How do you make a sweet curry?

What You Get

Sweet potato

Jalapeño pepper (optional)

Chicken thighs (see note below)

Kerala curry simmer sauce

Cooked brown rice

Flatbread

Cilantro

Yogurt

What You’ll Need

Salt

Vegetable oil

Butter

Makes 4 servings

Active Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 4 to 8 hours

Step 1

Dice the sweet potato (you should have about 2 cups). Mince 1 teaspoon of the jalapeño, if using. Remove the chicken thighs from the packaging, remove and discard the skin, and season with salt.

Step 2

In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, warm 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Sear the chicken thighs until golden, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the thighs directly to the slow cooker, top with the sweet potato and jalapeño and pour the simmer sauce over. Cover and cook until the chicken is completely tender and falling off the bone, on the low setting for 8 hours or high setting for 4 hours (see note below).

Step 3

Toward the end of cooking, reheat the rice in the microwave until steamed through and warm, 1 to 2 minutes or according to package instructions. Toast the flatbread and spread with butter. Pick the cilantro leaves and toss the stems.

Step 4

When the curry is ready, using tongs, remove and discard the bones. Season to taste with salt.

Step 5

Heap the rice into bowls and ladle the chicken curry over. Dollop with the yogurt and scatter with the cilantro leaves. Serve warm, with the buttered flatbread for dunking.

Contains: milk, tree nuts, wheat, soy.

Ingredient note: The chicken thighs may arrive frozen for freshness. Store them in the refrigerator to defrost before cooking. If you need to defrost them same day, place the sealed package in a bowl of cold water, and leave the tap running in a thin stream for about 30 minutes.

Equipment note: If you’re using an Instant Pot instead of a slow cooker, settings vary. Set the Instant Pot to slow cook on the “normal” setting for 8 hours.

Ingredients

1 tbsp sunflower oil
2 tsp mild curry paste
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces
4 tbsp red split lentils
300ml chicken stock
400ml can coconut milk
175g frozen peas

Method

STEP 1
Heat the oil in a deep frying pan or wok, stir in the curry paste and fry for 1 minute. Add the chicken, sweet potatoes and lentils and stir to coat in the paste, then pour in the stock and coconut milk. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.
STEP 2
Tip in the peas, bring back to the boil and simmer for a further 4-5 minutes. Season to taste before serving.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, March 2004

Posted: 4/27/17 Updated: 8/28/20

Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chicken Curry can be assembled ahead and stashed in the freezer for an easy, flavor-packed dinner. When you're ready to serve, thaw and dump in the slow cooker and you're ready to go!

Things I forgot about pregnancy:

That feeling you get at the end of the day when you finally get to crawl in bed...the whole world stops, your bed seems to 'hug' you, and you let out a big 'aaaaaah'. Best feeling of the whole day!

The way you can go from perfectly fine to a hangry crazy person who NEEDS. FOOD. NOW!!! I learned I can never leave the house without a granola bar.

Those cravings. They become like an obsession where you need to have nachos/fettuccine alfredo/pizza/insert-unhealthy-carb-of-choice-here, and you won't be able to rest until you have them. And when you finally get your craving, it tastes like the BEST thing you've ever eaten (even if it's from the freezer aisle of the grocery store).

My cravings have been so unhealthy, but now I'm emerging from the morning sickness/survival stage, I'm happily craving and eating much healthier food that's better for me and the baby. This slow cooker sweet potato chicken curry was one of my cravings, and I happily ate every bite right up.

I've been working hard to come up with some meal prep dinner recipes, and this is my second freezer to crock pot recipe. Check out this Healthy Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili (Freezer to Crock Pot)!

This is another recipe I photographed back in February and I'm happy to be sharing it with you finally! It started out as a variation of the Ymir Curry from the Whitewater Cooks (awesome cookbook BTW!), but I was looking for a recipe that doesn't include lemongrass, galangal root, or kaffir lime leaves, because I want my recipes to be made with ingredients accessible to everyone.

So I experimented and after 3-4 batches, ended up with this delicious and SUPER flavorful curry, made with stuff you should easily be able to find in your store.

Here's my warning to you. WARNING: this slow cooker sweet potato chicken curry is on the sweet side! (It's not JUST sweet, it has all those beautiful contrasting curry flavors: savory, spicy, sour, and all those delicious spices).

Personally, I love a sweeter curry. But if that's not your preference, this is not the recipe for you. As the sweet potato cooks, it breaks down a bit, thickening the sauce and sweetening it too.

Some suggestions to reduce the sweetness: swap some or all of the sweet potatoes with red potatoes. Or omit the brown sugar.

So. The thing about this curry is that you do need to make a 'flavor base' before freezing or throwing in the slow cooker. I love recipes that you can dump straight into the slow cooker without pre-cooking, but unfortunately that just doesn't give the same flavor for this recipe.

The flavor base= onions + garlic, ginger, and allllll of the spices in this recipe, sauteed together to make the most deeeelicious base to your recipe. It takes a total of 10 minutes, so it's not really too much effort, and you will be rewarded with some serious flavor!

And the best part: it's freezer-friendly! You can assemble all of your ingredients (minus the chicken stock), and freeze them for up to 3 months before thawing and dumping in the slow cooker. I was worried about freezing the raw sweet potatoes, and they browned a tiny bit, but after 4 hours in the slow cooker, I wouldn't have guessed in a million years that the whole thing had been frozen.

Tips for your perfect slow cooker sweet potato chicken curry

reduce the sweetness: omit the brown sugar and swap half (or all) sweet potatoes with red potatoes
make it vegetarian! Omit the chicken thighs, and use one or two 19 oz cans of chickpeas (add after curry has cooked through).
add some extra veggies an hour before serving: snap peas, sliced bell peppers, cauliflower florets, etc

Equipment and ingredients

here's the slow cooker I use
I love these handy Jokari baggie holders
and these gallon freezer bags
I love this red curry paste

Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!

▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
▢ 1 tablespoon brown sugar
▢ 1 cup onions minced
▢ 4 cloves garlic minced
▢ 1 tablespoon ginger finely chopped
▢ 1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
▢ 2 tablespoons peanut butter
▢ 2 teaspoons garam masala
▢ 2 teaspoons ground cumin
▢ 1 teaspoons turmeric
▢ ½ teaspoons salt
▢ 1 ½ lb boneless skinless chicken thighs roughly 9
▢ 4 cups sweet potato cut into 2-inch cubes 1 large sweet potato
▢ 3 carrots peeled and diced
▢ 2 tablespoons fish sauce
▢ 2 cups chicken stock

After cooking

▢ 4 large handfuls of spinach or baby kale
▢ 400 mL coconut milk full fat
▢ 1 tablespoon lime juice

Heat oil over medium heat in a medium pan.
Add onions and brown sugar and sautee until onions are cooked through, around 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and ginger, and cook for 2 minutes, until fragrant and soft.
Add the curry paste, peanut butter, garam masala, cumin, turmeric and salt. Stir to coat onions and toast spices for 2 or so minutes.
Remove from heat and allow to cool.
To cook right away:Transfer the onions to the base of a 5 quart slow cooker along with the chicken, sweet potatoes, carrots, fish sauce and chicken stock.
Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours, until sweet potatoes are cooked through.
Stir in the spinach/kale, lime juice and coconut milk, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Serve over rice or with naan bread.
To assemble ahead:In an 8-cup storage container or a quart-sized heavy duty freezer bag, add the chicken, sweet potatoes and onion/spice mixture.
Seal and freeze for up to 3 months.
Thaw completely before cooking. Add thawed mixture to the slow cooker and stir in 2 cups of chicken stock and 2 tablespoons fish sauce.
Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours, until sweet potatoes are cooked through.
Stir in the spinach/kale, lime juice and coconut milk, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Serve over rice or with naan bread.

This curry is medium-spicy (this will depend on your curry paste).
The sweet potatoes are fall-apart tender and dissolve a bit into the sauce.

Serving: 1/8 batch, Calories: 322kcal, Carbohydrates: 27g, Protein: 22g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 69mg, Sodium: 821mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 8g

© Sweet Peas & Saffron - Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.

Meet Denise Bustard

Denise Bustard is the creator of Sweet Peas and Saffron, a meal prep-focussed food blog. With a PhD in biochemistry, Denise takes a scientific approach to perfecting her recipes. You can find Denise's work featured on Huffington Post, MSN, Self and more.

Reader Interactions

Can you use coconut milk in a slow cooker?

Pour the coconut milk and cornstarch slurry into the slow cooker, and stir to combine with the vegetables and cooking liquid. Turn the slow cooker heat to HIGH, cover, and cook for 15 minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly.

Is coconut milk Nice in curry?

There are several different variations of curry, but all recipes call for coconut milk. This is because you want it to have a nice flavor to it while also adding a liquid substance without it being too watered down. Coconut milk adds a sweetness to curry that counteracts the spice, creating a nice balance.

Can you slow cook Indian curry?

Put the oil, onions, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, spices, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom pods, curry leaves and chicken into the slow cooker. Season and stir well. Put the lid on and cook on high for 3½ hrs. Remove the lid and stir in the coconut milk.

How do you make a sweet curry?

Add equal parts sugar and salt, a teaspoon at a time, mixing well between each pair of additions and tasting until the curry is no longer bitter. Sugar and salt help to reduce bitterness. You can use any sweetener or salt you like.