Low-Calorie Chicken Curry That Still Tastes Rich
The takeout curry you actually crave, rebuilt at half the calories. Tomato base, a measured pour of light coconut milk, and chicken that stays tender.
You need
- 1 deep pan with lid
- 1 small pot for rice
- 1 sharp knife
Ingredients
For 2 servings
- 350 g (12 oz) chicken breast, in bite-size pieces
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp curry powder (or 2 tsp garam masala + 1 tsp turmeric)
- 400 g (1 can) chopped tomatoes
- 100 ml (scant 1/2 cup) light coconut milk
- 1 tsp neutral oil
- 120 g (2/3 cup) basmati rice, dry
- salt + pepper to taste, fresh cilantro if you have it
How to cook
Start the rice: rinse it, cover with double its volume of water, lid on, lowest heat, 12 minutes, then rest off the heat.
Soften the onion in the oil over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes until translucent.
Add the garlic and curry powder and stir for 30 seconds.
The moment the spices smell toasty instead of dusty, add the tomatoes. Ten seconds too long and they turn bitter.
Pour in the tomatoes, season, and simmer 5 minutes so the sauce loses its raw-tin edge.
Add the chicken and simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes until just cooked through. Gentle is the word, a hard boil makes breast meat chalky.
Stir in the light coconut milk and warm through for 1 minute. Do not boil it hard after this point.
Taste, adjust salt, and serve over the rice with cilantro on top.
Why it fits a lose weight goal
- 470 kcal including the rice, a comparable takeout curry with rice runs 900 or more.
- The trick is the ratio: tomato base for body, exactly 100 ml light coconut milk for richness instead of a full-fat can.
- 40 g protein keeps you full through the evening, the usual cut-mode failure point.
Cooking guides
Pann plans meal prep around the days you pick: one cooking session, a box for every meal with its day and how long it keeps, and the shopping list. Free for 7 days.
