By Rajlakshmi
January 22, 2026
Kadai chicken roughly translates to chicken prepared in a kadai. This dish originates from the North-western parts of erstwhile undivided India. This is a one-pot recipe that you can try for your weekend dinners.
½ cup oil or ghee 500g chicken, bone-in and cut into curry pieces 6-7 tomatoes, roughly chopped 1 whole bulb of garlic, minced 2 tbsp ginger, minced 2 tsp salt, or to taste 2 tsp red chilli powder 1½ tsp crushed black pepper 1 tsp chilli flakes ½ tsp cumin powder ½ tsp coriander powder 1 tsp kalonji, optional 7-8 green chillies, slit in half 15-20 sprigs of coriander, chopped 1 inch piece of ginger, julienned
Heat oil in a kadai. Add the chicken in. Fry this, stirring constantly until the chicken begins to take on a golden colour.
Add in the minced ginger and garlic. Give this a fry until the raw smell of the ginger and garlic begins to fade.
Add chopped tomatoes and spices. Stir in and allow this all to cook on high, stirring to ensure nothing burns.
Continue to cook for 25 minutes. The oil will separate, the tomatoes will thicken and begin to coat the chicken.
Add coriander and green chillies. Turn the heat down to a low flame. Allow everything to simmer for 5 minutes.
Turn off the heat. Serve kadai chicken with rice, roti or naan.