I must have made this Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry dozens of times over the last few years as it’s a huge family favourite. And I love to make it on busy days because it’s a super simple recipe, takes just five minutes to prep and uses chicken legs which helps to keep it budget friendly.
The base of this flavourful curry is super simple, it uses korma or mild curry paste, coconut milk, onion and freshly chopped tomatoes. It’s fully kid approved, my two love how mild it is, so it’s a great choice for those who don’t like or are not used to spicy food, including toddlers.
This curry recipe is based on one my mother would make when I was growing up, that she got from a friend. I have tweaked it since then and made it suitable for the slow cooker.
Technically, this is a mild chicken and tomato curry because there are lots of tomatoes in this, however, the sauce doesn’t turn out like a tomato curry sauce because we’re using fresh tomatoes as opposed to tinned chopped tomatoes.
If you don’t have a slow cooker, but you think your family will love this curry, you can find stovetop instructions in the recipe also.
If you have a toddler or a fussy eater and are wondering how to adapt this mild chicken curry made in the slow cooker for your family, see here >
FAQ’s For My Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry
Do I have to use Chicken legs?
I love to cook this meal with chicken legs for two reasons;
- The skin and the bones give extra flavour to the curry sauce and
- It’s cheaper!
You can also use a 1 kg pack of bone in and skin on chicken thighs instead of whole legs. If you have young children and you don’t want to faff around taking the chicken off the bones, you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs if you prefer.
If that’s the case you can use anywhere between a 650g pack up to a 1kg pack of chicken boneless thighs if you want leftovers.
What curry paste do I need to this recipe?
I always use korma curry paste, because of its coconut flavour and how mild it is. You can also use mild curry paste if you have trouble finding korma curry paste.
Can I use tinned chopped tomatoes instead of fresh?
I’m going to say no, and that’s because you want this sauce to stay silky and creamy. If you use tinned chopped tomatoes they will blend into the sauce noticeably. Using fresh tomatoes won’t lead to a tomatoey sauce.
Don’t I need to brown the chicken legs first?
You can if you like, but it’s not necessary. When I cook this on the stovetop I do sometimes brown the chicken legs first. If you want to do this heat the oil then add your chicken legs and fry each side for 4 to 5 minutes. Then remove the legs and fry your onions and tomatoes.
Can I prepare this a Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry in advance?
There’s not much prep work involved with this meal, but you can certainly chop your tomatoes and onions and store them in a suitable food bag or airtight container in the fridge until you’re ready to use.
How should I serve this Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry?
I usually serve this curry simply with just rice, and my kids love it with mango chutney too. It would also be great with your favourite Indian bread like chapatti or naan, or with rice and bread together. It also goes perfectly with Bombay potatoes and Saag Aloo.
Can I feed more people with this recipe?
Well, it depends on the size of your slow cooker or crockpot. If you have a 6.5 litre slow cooker, you should be fine to double the recipe as is. If you have a smaller slow cooker and you switch to boneless chicken thighs, you should be able to double the recipe too.
How can younger children help make it?
I’ve found that tomatoes are a good first food for younger children to start chopping with a child safe kitchen knife, as they are soft. Task them with chopping the tomatoes while you do the onion.
Can I Store Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry leftovers?
You can store any Chicken Curry leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days (cook day + 2). Leftovers can also be frozen, just defrost for 24 hours in the fridge and reheat in the microwave, stirring halfway, until steaming hot all the way through.
More on safe food storage and reheating.
What diets is this recipe suitable for?
My Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry is egg, dairy and gluten-free. It may NOT be suitable for those with a nut allergy because of the curry paste. Check the label first.
Adapting My Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry For Your Family
Eating together is beneficial for families of all ages and stages, for a multitude of reasons; nutritional, behavioural, psychological and for healthy family functioning. This section will show you how to tweak this Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry recipe for sharing with a toddler or a fussy eater, which will help make it easier to eat together as a family.
Keeping Fussy Eaters Happy
If you have a picky eater who is put off by tomato chunks and meals I have a hot tip for you! Cook it on the stove instead of the slow cooker. You’ll find the tomato pretty much disintegrates, which is great for those with fussy eaters who don’t like tomatoes. My son who is a fussy eater, prefers it when I cook this on the stove as opposed to the slow cooker for that reason. So, if you don’t mind cooking this on the stove instead, I would recommend you do that if you have a tomato hater in your family.
You might be worried about your fussy eater liking curry if they’ve not had it before, but I would say in terms of curries, this mild version is probably the best one to try first. You can also dish theirs up with a slotted spoon, allowing most of the sauce to run off if you like.
My son who is a fussy eater loves to eat this with mango chutney, which actually I find makes any curry to him more appealing.
Making My Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry Suitable Toddlers
Because this uses shop bought curry paste, which can be salty, this recipe is only suitable for little ones who are 12 months +. If you are eating with a toddler, don’t add any additional salt into the cook. Once you’ve taken out the chicken legs dish up their serving, and then if you like, you can add salt into the sauce that’s left in the slow cooker pot and stir it in well.
How to Serve
Remove the skin from a chicken leg and cut the chicken thigh section into bite-size pieces, making sure you discard any bones.
I’ve also added these notes to the bottom of the recipe so you have them to hand when you come to cook.
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Mild Slow Cooker Chicken Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon flavourless cooking oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 4-5 large tomatoes around 500g/17.64oz, diced
- 1 kg chicken legs skin on, see note 1
- 95 g korma or mild curry paste
- 400 ml coconut milk
- Salt & black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in your removable slow cooker pot (or frying pan) over a medium heat for a couple of minutes then add the onion and tomatoes. Fry for 3 minutes, stirring often.
- Add in the curry paste, salt and pepper and cook, stirring for 1 minute.
- Transfer the pot back into the slow cooker base, add in the coconut milk and stir until well combined.
- Nestle in the chicken legs, using a fork to push them under the liquid. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours, medium for 4-5 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
TO COOK ON THE STOVE
- Heat the oil in a medium-large saucepan over a medium heat. Add in the onion and tomatoes and fry for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add in the curry paste, salt and pepper and cook, stirring for 1 minute.
- Add in the coconut milk, stirring until well combined. Turn heat to high and add in the chicken legs top side down (see note 2 if you want to brown the legs first). Bring to the boil, cover and turn heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes, uncover and give it all a good stir and turn the chicken legs over. Cook for a further 40 minutes uncovered, stirring occasionally so the sauce doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.
Notes
Baby & Toddler
STORAGE
Nutrition
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