Chicken dhansak is a delicious and stomach warming Parsee and Indian recipe. Generally, it involves simmering meat in a mixture of red lentils, green lentils or brown lentils and vegetables, onions, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, fresh coriander and spices. It’s a perfect recipe to make in the middle of the week, as it only has a prep time of 10 minutes and is made from simple ingredients.
In my opinion, it is a fantastic recipe if you would like to start cutting down on your meat consumption (lentils are great for this). In fact, you can eventually leave out the chicken for a luscious curry of lentils, onions, chopped tomatoes, garlic, ginger and spices.
So, if you're starting your way on your vegetarian journey, try this chicken dhansak recipe today. Once you try this chicken dhansak, you’ll wish you had this recipe a long time ago. Enjoy and let me know how it goes.
Chicken dhansak recipe
A dhansak recipe involves cubes of mutton or goat, simmered with spices, red lentils, green lentils or brown lentils and other vegetables. In short, it is a vibrant recipe which combines sweet, sour and spicy ingredients in one bite. Usually, a chicken dhansak recipe takes hours to prepare. However, my version only takes an hour with only 10 minutes prep time, saving you lots of time and getting you the perfect outcome.
I decided to make this recipe a tad lighter by substituting the mutton or goat meat with chicken. For best results, brine the chicken. This is when you add the chicken into a salt water solution first. The salt water makes the meat incredibly tender. You can also use chicken thigh fillets. Aside from chicken thighs, you can use any other cut of the chicken:
Next, my version is a lot easier because you add the chicken breasts with the addition of a homemade curry base sauce. Generally I like to make a large batch of it and then store it in my freezer for when I feel like a curry. It’s really handy.
You can also swap in garlic ginger paste in place of fresh garlic and ginger. It'll still taste great!
If you’ve got leftover curry base sauce, here are a few curries you can make with it apart from the chicken dhansak:
- Sweet potato curry with mushrooms and spinach – a nutty vegetable curry with garlic, ginger fresh coriander and spices. Add lentils for extra taste
- Mixed vegetable curry – a vibrant vegetarian curry that’s very tasty and nutritious. Again you can add lentils for depth of flavour
- Beef korma – an intense curry with fresh coriander, garlic, ginger and spice flavours, with a creamy texture
Tempted yet?
Top things you’ll need for a dhansak recipe
Here’s a list of the top items and ingredients you’ll need to complete this chicken dhansak recipe. See the following products below:
- Boning knife – if you bought a whole chicken for this chicken dhansak recipe you’ll need a boning knife for the chicken
- Curry serving dishes – these curry serving dishes will bring authenticity to your dish
- Slow cooker – if you’ve got a slow cooker at home then use it by all means for this chicken dish
- Pressure cooker – the lentils and the meat are best cooked in the pressure cooker (I bet you can cut the cooking time by half)
- Chopped tomatoes – tomatoes give the curry a rich taste and thick texture. You can substitute the chopped tomatoes for fresh tomatoes
- Red lentils – red lentils are an essential component of this recipe. You could also use green lentils or brown lentils. You can also buy lentils ready to eat in a can, for a shorter cook time to this chicken and lentils curry. Another way to reduce the cooking time is to soak them in water for 40 minutes before you cook them
Chicken dhansak taste
This chicken dhansak curry recipe is a combination of traditional Indian spices and ingredients with lentils and sweet and sour elements. Most of the times, a dhansak recipe is rich and earthy in taste because it is served with mutton or goat meat and lentils. More than that, it's quite sweet and sour in taste.
The sweet taste generally comes from the addition of sugar (brown sugar most of the time). However, in order to cut down on the sugar and introduce some more acidity, it’s common to substitute with fresh pineapple or lemon juice. With these added ingredients, you'll get a big boost of vitamin C for good measure!
In terms of the level of spices, you can make it a mild heat. However, the original version calls for medium heat.
Chicken dhansak origin
A dhansak curry recipe stems from Persian and Gujarati cuisines. Originally, it was a Parsee dish. However, it is also a very popular dish with Indian people, where it was spread amongst Parsee or Zoroastrian people in India.
If we look at the word dhansak, ‘dhan’ refers to a Gujarati cereal dish. ‘Sak’ is derived from the word ‘shaak’, which refers to cooked vegetables.
Generally speaking, this chicken curry recipe involves a cooking technique that extends the meat with the addition of lentils or split peas and other vegetables. This is done because, in those regions, meat is considered an expensive ingredient. Therefore, you add the chicken at the beginning of the process, along with the lentils, onions, garlic and ginger, for a more filling dish.
While ghee is traditionally used, you can substitute it with vegetable, sunflower or coconut oil.
In Parsi culture, a dhansak curry recipe is served always on a Sunday. In addition, it is never served for three days when a family member or a close friend passes. This is because, culturally speaking, meat should not be consumed in the three days.
However, after three days of mourning, the dhansak curry is served on the fourth day. Lastly, a dhansak recipe is never served on weddings or other festivities.
Chicken dhansak slow cooker
Normally, a chicken dhansak curry recipe takes a long time to cook, but only 10 minutes to prepare. You add the chicken, lentils, onions, garlic, ginger, curry powder, chilli powder and other spices to the casserole, add chicken stock and other ingredients, and let it simmer away. The texture you should be going for is mushy, as the chicken and lentils break up into the sauce.
Therefore, I recommend you use a slow cooker or a pressure cooker. This will cut your cooking time in half! Other slow cooker recipes you can try:
What to serve with a dhansak?
Caramelised brown rice is the side dish of choice for any dhansak curry recipe. You make it by boiling rice in caramel water. First, you start by making your own caramel until it reaches a beautiful hazelnut brown colour. Next, you dilute the caramel with lots of water.
Make sure you have enough water to boil your rice. Lastly, cook your rice in the caramel water. The rice will take on a beautiful brown colour. You could even cook the rice in chicken stock. Serve the rice hot, with a squeeze of lemon juice and some fresh coriander, alongside the chicken dhansak.
Other side dishes you can consider are:
- White basmati rice
- Jasmin rice
- garlic naan, ordinary naan or peshwari naan
- kerala paratha, chapatis or rotis
- Roasted green beans with garlic (if you would like to cut down on carbs)
- Bombay aloo or saag aloo
- Mushroom bhaji
Which side dish resonates with you the most with this chicken dhansak? Of course, you can make all of these and make a feast.
Best toppings for dhansak
Here are just a few topping ideas which you can inspire yourself with for this chicken dhansak. In my opinion these are the best topping ingredients:
- Freshly sliced pineapple
- Fresh coriander leaves or a sprinkle of ground coriander
- A squeeze of lemon juice with zest
- Add the chicken with slices of fresh red or green chillies, or some chilli powder for extra heat
- Add a sprinkle of garam masala at the end
- Add a tbsp of mango chutney for a tangy twist
Other toppings that also work for this chicken dhansak recipe are:
- Peanuts or cashews
- Yoghurt
- parsley
- roasted vegetables
How would you serve your chicken dhansak? Let me know how the recipe works out for you and leave a comment below.
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Chicken Dhansak
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
A delicious chicken dhansak curry recipe with lentils and sweet and sour flavours from the addition of fresh pineapple.
Ingredients
- 15–30ml (1 tbsp–2 tbsp) ghee (can use 1 tbsp sunflower oil, vegetable oil or coconut oil
- 5ml (1 tsp) ground turmeric
- 1kg (2lbs) chicken breasts, chopped
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
- 5cm (2in) ginger root, peeled and grated
- 200g (1 cup) split red lentils, green lentils or brown lentils, washed
- 400g chopped tomatoes
- 500ml (2 cups) curry base sauce
- 250ml (1 cup) chicken stock or water
- 5ml (1 tsp) curry powder
- 5ml (1 tsp) garam masala
- 5ml (1 tsp) ground coriander
- 5ml (1 tsp) chilli powder (optional)
- 125ml (½ cup) pineapple juice
- ½ pineapple, cored and sliced
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat 1 tbsp–2 tbsp of ghee over a medium heat in a large ovenproof casserole pan or large frying pan.
- Add the onions and fry for 5 minutes. Stir regularly
- Add the chicken pieces to the onions and cover with 1 tsp of turmeric, then brown on all sides in the casserole pan. Stir over a medium heat.
- Add garlic and ginger or the garlic ginger paste, stir and fry for 1 minute.
- Add the chopped tomatoes, stir and cook for 1 minute
- Pour in the curry base sauce, lentils and 250ml (1 cup) of chicken stock into the pan and bring the contents to a low simmering heat.
- Cook for 30 minutes, but check in every 10 minutes or so and give it a stir, to make sure there’s enough liquid in the pot (you don't want the lentils sticking to the bottom of the pan. If not, top up with a bit of water or some chicken stock.
- After the chicken pieces and lentils are cooked, add 1 tsp of curry powder, 1 tsp of garam masala, 1 tsp of chilli powder (optional), ground coriander, pineapple juice (or lemon juice) and pineapple and give it a stir.
- Simmer for another 5–10 minutes on a low to medium heat.
- Serve with your favourite Indian side dishes. It freezes well too. Enjoy!
Notes
Add an extra sprinkle of garam masala at the end, to add an extra dimension to the dish.
If you can't get hold of ghee, use 1 tbsp sunflower oil, vegetable oil or coconut oil.
Add some fresh coriander for a beautiful garnish.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Curry
- Method: Simmer
- Cuisine: Indian
Keywords: chicken dhansak, authentic Indian chicken curry recipe, dhansak curry recipe
sam
I'm loving chicken smothered in peanut butter atm!
Cheryl Hadfield
Chicken and chorizo is a family favourite
★★★★★
Margaret Mccaffery
I love it in a Chicken Katsu curry.
melanie stirling
Chicken kiev is my favourite.
Laura pyper
Chicken curry
Andrea Upton
I cook a lot of Chicken, but my favourite has to be the classic roast chicken
★★★★★
Angie S
Garlic & herb cheese stuffed chicken wrapped in ham is a family favourite and satay chicken probably my fave. We love a good curry and am looking forward to trying your chicken dhansak recipe as it sounds delicious 🙂
pete c
Lemon chicken would be my favourite at the moment
Martina Evans
Roast chicken is my favourite.
RachGB
I love a chicken curry!
Kim Pang
I love sticky ginger and honey glazed chicken and rice 😊
★★★★
Solange
Honey Garlic Chicken.
Kirstie
I’d choose dhansak with Bombay aloo! And now I’m hungry!
Jade Hewlett
My favourite is roast chicken but I also really like chicken kiev too
Kim M
Love chicken in white wine x
Sharon Herbert
My favourite is actually chicken dhansak and I can't wait to try your recipe 😋
Susan B
Old fashioned roast chicken with lemon and herb stuffing is my favourite.
Helen Thurston
I don't eat chicken now but when I did I used to love a good chicken bhuna with mushroom rice.
Victoria Prince
Roast chicken 🙂 can't beat a good Sunday roast! (Hope that counts as a chicken recipe...)
Laura banks
chicken wrapped in bacon with a cheese sauce
Kim Neville
Chicken in a creamy mushroom sauce
Iain maciver
love chicken a la king
Susan Lloyd
Chicken Katsu curry x
Jamie Edwards
My family adores hunters chicken, even my fussy toddlers.
★★★★★
Peter Watson
Coq Au Vin
★★★★★
Tracy Nixon
I love chicken stew!
★★★★★
Chris S
My favourite chicken recipe is chicken and leek pie with puff pastry. Served with dauphinois potatoes.
claire woods
I don't eat meat.
Claire Driver
Chicken and mushroom risotto
cat
My sticky chinese baked chicken
Lucy
I love chicken leek and mushroom pies
Adrian Bold
I enjoy a good chicken curry!
Laura Pritchard
Roast chicken with all the trimmings!
★★★
Joo Dee
a nice Chicken Chasseur
Elizm
roast chicken with all the trimmings
Carolynn Woodland
Chicken Dhansak is my favourite curry dish but I also love Coq au Vin.
Caroline Signey
Chicken fajitas
Christina Palmer
Chicken curry
Tracy Newton
Chicken in a Diane sauce
Mel Pennie
Peri peri chicken . . . nice and spicy!
Helen Best
I love lots, Chicken Curry & Hunters Chicken, & many more all my favourites
Margaret Clarkson
I'm from the North East so its a Parmo. (Chicken Parmesan.)
Sue McCarthy
I'm veggie, have been for 23 years, but I used to love Garlic Chilli chicken at our local Indian Restaurant.
Ray Dodds
Chicken Kiev
Wendy Smith
Green Thai chicken curry is a family favourite
kathleen warwick
My favourite is Roast Chicken with all the trimmings
Mark R
Chicken thighs stuffed with chorizo is my current favourite
Emily Hutchinson
Hunters Chicken, a classic but so delicious
Graham Ross
Chicken vindaloo
Carole Nott
A traditional chicken roast is always a favourite.
★★★★★
Sheri Darby
I love chicken madras
★★★★★
Suzanne
Chicken curry
Keith Hunt
Chicken and leek pie
Mandy Betts
Chicken and mushroom lasagne
Rebecca Sutton
Homemade chicken kievs, but you have to have decent chicken breasts, not the ones from supermarkets
Tania Atfield
Mediterranean chicken with olives, lemon and bacon
Toni Pearson
I love my nans home made chicken soup
kathy Glamour cakebread
i'd serve it with chips 🙂
Denise Coy
I do like a chicken madras and rice.
Jayne Townson
Spicy chicken curry.
Mark Mccaffery
My favourite is a chicken tikka masala.
Rena Plumridge
I love good old roast chicken you can’t beat it
Andrea Fletcher
Chicken, leek and bacon pie.
Julie Ward
Garlic chicken kiev, I have never made my own yet
fiona waterworth
a simple chicken casserole, which is put in the slow cooker
Phil Boyle
Chicken Bhuna
Sarah Mccaffery
My favourite recipe for chicken is Sweet chilli chicken kebabs.
Natalie Charman
Sweet and sour chicken
Sadiyya Maryam
Definitely tandoori chicken baked in the oven.
Theresa Wakeley
Love a good chicken curry! Chicken curries are my fave and would love to try out this recipe!
★★★★★
Nicki Evans
Naga Chicken
ROBERT MCINTOSH
chicken pakora
Corinne Peat
You can’t beat a lovely roast chicken with all the trimmings.
Alexandra Armstrong
Chicken & mushroom risotto
Ann Goody
Tandoori chicken for me
Kristie Metcalfe
Garlic Chicken. Always goes down a treat in our house!
olivia Kirby
I really love a tomato an chicken pasta bake with lots of mozzarella on top
Allan Fullarton
Chicken Bhuna
clair downham
homemade chicken curry
Rachael McCadden
Tandoori chicken
Charlotte isobelle
Chicken and pepper skewers with bbq glaze
thecatwhisper
Chicken Kiev. It might be old fashioned but I still like it
★★★★★
Tamara Foster
Jambalaya
Avs
Chicken Tika Masala
Kimberley Harris
I like creamy garlic chicken
katarzyna benmailoud
Chicken fajitas
sallie burrows
chicken satay
James Travis
Chicken Tikka Sagwalla
Debby
Roast chicken is my all-time favourite - plain or with a light sprinkling of black pepper or mixed herbs. Chicken stews and casseroles would be next on my list, with herby dumplings and lots of fresh chunky cut vegetables. If neither of these are classed as 'recipes' I'll add a homemade version of spicy Nando's-style chicken with peri-peri chips and savoury rice with fresh green side salad.
Summer Rowley
I love garlic and herb stuffed chicken breast wrapped in bacon served with sweet potato
Sare Davies
Chicken Tagine
Emma Ellams
Sweet and sour chicken with noodles!
Clare Fox
I love chicken with cranberries in a puff pastry ring .... its amazing and a family fav as well as great for entertaining
Emma England
My favourite chicken recipe is satay chicken. I have it with noodles.
Charlotte Wilde
i make 'chicken in a pot' and my kids love it - its basically a pot roast chicken with herbs, bacon, lemon, garlic and potatoes - then the left overs go in a pie!
kimberley ryan
Hunters chicken is my favourite, its something my whole family enjoys
JAMES HOLYLAND
Chinese Chicken & black bean sauce
Elizabeth Bazley
Chicken leek and ham pie
Alison Johnson
Hubby loves chicken breast stuffed with stilton & wrapped in ham.
Valerie Seal
I like chicken in a white sauce with white grapes, served with potatoes and veg
Valerie Brown
Butter chicken is my favourite
Matilda
I love chicken soup, as it's warm, delicious and such a comfort food! 🙂
Priscilla Stubbs
I love a home made chicken curry
kay sherman
chicken, cherizo and pepper pasta
Kim Carberry
I love Chicken fajitas. x
Ken S
I'm trying to cut meat out of my diet but when I do have it I love Katsu Chicken
Susan Willshee
Sorry but I don't eat chicken as I'm veggie. I don't even eat meat replacements such as Quorn so I can't suggest a way to use that instead of chicken.
Pam Smith
Cheese stuffed chicken breast wrapped in bacon
Kirsten Barthy
In fajitas
Troy Easton
has to be Chicken Katsu curry.
Zoey H
Love a home made chicken curry
Nicola S
At the moment my favourite chicken recipe is a chicken noodle soup. It’s light, quick and really tasty.
Julie Camm
Currently my favourite is a chicken breast stuffed with herbs and garlic soft cheese and wrapped in ham or bacon.
lynn neal
Chicken and mushroom pie!
Allison Sherwood
My favourite chicken recipe is creamy chicken, leek and wholegrain mustard casserole served with rice and crusty bread.
Absolutely delicious.
Nadia Josephine
I am vegan so I haven't eaten chicken for many years and I find the Marks and Spencers No Chick Chicken is an fantastic substitute for any chicken recipe. I use it in casseroles and my meat eating boyfriend loves it. I take inspiration from a lot of recipes even if they have meat in I just substitute with a plant-based alternative!
Julia Linsley
Chicken in white wine and tarragon
Sarah Heath
I love chicken with red pesto and mozzarella, it is a firm favourite in our house.
Angela Kelly
I love a chicken pasta bake with tons of cheese.
Karen R
I love chicken katsu curry xx
Erica Hughes
Chicken Tikka Massala
Barry Rowlings
Lemon chicken
Kat Allinson
I love chicken smothered in green pesto and wrapped in puff pastry
Hayley Colburn
It's a tough one as I use chicken for most of my favourite dishes but it's 50/50 between a chicken pathia or creamy Tuscan chicken
★★★★★
Donna W
A simple roast chicken is a favourite in our family.
Liz T
Chickpea vegetarian curry
paula meadows
chicken kiev
Francesca H
Chicken kiev.
Terry Becker
Deep fried
Zoe Levenson
Honey Ginger chicken
★★★★
Ruth lee
chicken katsu curry
Sammie Martin
Butter Chicken is the best
Roxanne Warner
Korma
chloe brill
chicken and chorizzo pasta bake
★★★★
Jo Nichol
I love hunter's chicken
Stev Rigby
Chicken Passata (That is a posh way of saying chicken in a tomato sauce)
Josie Mellor
Chicken biryani
Fiona Johnstone
Balmoral chicken is so lovely. Look up the recipe. I recommend it to everyone.
Carol Phile
I do a satay style chicken chow me in that we love
Ioana Cristina Popescu
Chicken curry
Adele Knight
Chicken Supreme
Jennifer Toal
Chicken fajitas
Carolyn E
I do like a Portuguese peri peri chicken, charred.
★★★★★
Sandra Fortune
I love sweet and sour chicken
Heli L
The whole family loves chicken tights in Nando's marinade roasted with new potatoes and veg
sharon martin
chicken stew and dumplings
Catherine Barton
Mushy pea chicken curry
Herbert Appleby
chicken kievs
AnnaSSS
Gold Buttery Bake Chicken with green salad. The best off...
astrid c
don't eat chicken anymore, but any chicken dishes i like i replace with vegan qourn! love a good curry!
Meryl Thomas
We don't eat chicken as we are veggies, so we use chicken substitutes. I make a wonderful mushroom and 'chicken' pie
laura stewart
sticky lemon chicken with noodles
Lisa Sweeney
chicken dhansak
Lucy Irving
Chicken Kiev
Sayeed Rahman
chicken fajitas
Tammy Neal
Chicken curry x
Emma Davison
Chicken and mushroom pie
Caroline Buckley
A classic roast chicken with stuffing, carrots and homemade Yorkshire puddings
Sue
Goan chicken curry
LOUISE HEATON
I love Bertolli basted roast chicken.
david cavender
chicken casserole
ellie spider
I love chicken korma 🙂
Steve
How do you make the curry base sauce?
Michelle Minnaar
Sorry about that, Steve. I've updated the recipe so that there is a link to the Curry Base Sauce.
nigel
After 30 years of searching, Ive finally found a Dhansak recipe with easily sourced ingredients that tastes as good as my takeaway memories from my student days. Thank you so much Michelle.
★★★★★