Chicken Madras Recipe (Hot, Tangy & Authentic)

Chicken madras is the curry to make when you want real heat. It's a bold, deep red curry with a tangy edge, built on a base of onions, tomatoes, and a generous hand of chilli. Unlike butter chicken or tikka masala, there's no cream here. The sauce is hearty and spiced rather than rich and silky,

Here's how we do it.

What is Chicken Madras?

Madras is named after the South Indian city now called Chennai. It's known for being one of the hotter curries on the menu, sitting above a korma or a butter chicken but below a vindaloo on the heat scale.

The flavour comes from three things working together: heat from the chilli, tang from tomatoes and a little tamarind, and earthy depth from cumin, coriander, and turmeric. A pinch of fenugreek and cinnamon rounds it out. You can dial the heat up or down to suit your table, which we'll come to in the tips.

Ingredients

• 700g chicken thighs, boneless, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 large onions, finely chopped
• 3 fresh tomatoes, finely chopped (or 400g tinned chopped tomatoes)
• 2 tbsp garlic/ginger paste
• 2 green chillies, slit lengthwise
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil or ghee
• 1 tbsp tamarind paste (or 1 tbsp lemon juice)
• ½ cup water or chicken stock
• Salt to taste
• Fresh coriander, chopped, to serve

Spices

• 1 tbsp red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
• 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder (for colour)
• 2 tsp dhana jeera powder (coriander cumin)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• ½ tsp garam masala powder
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds, ground (or a pinch of crushed kasoori methi)
• 1 tsp jeera (cumin seeds)
• ½ cinnamon stick

To serve

• Basmati rice or naan
• Lemon wedges
• Fresh coriander, chopped

Instructions

1. Prep the chicken. Pat the chicken dry and season lightly with salt. Set aside while you build the sauce.

2. Bloom the whole spices. Heat the oil or ghee in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and cinnamon stick and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

3. Cook the onions. Add the onions and cook for 8–10 minutes over medium heat until deep golden brown. This is where a madras gets its depth, so don't rush it.

4. Add garlic, ginger, and chilli. Stir in the garlic/ginger paste and green chillies. Cook for 2 minutes until the raw smell goes.

5. Add the tomatoes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 6–8 minutes until they break down and the oil starts to separate at the edges.

6. Add the spice powders. Add the red chilli powder, Kashmiri chilli powder, dhana jeera, turmeric, and ground fenugreek. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add a splash of water if it sticks.

7. Add the chicken. Add the chicken and stir to coat in the spice paste. Cook for 4–5 minutes until sealed on all sides.

8. Simmer. Pour in the water or stock and the tamarind paste. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and tender.

9. Finish. Stir through the garam masala. Taste and adjust salt and tamarind. The sauce should be hot, tangy, and savoury.

10. Serve. Garnish with fresh coriander and serve with basmati rice or naan and lemon wedges on the side.

Tips for the Best Chicken Madras

• A madras is meant to be hot, but you decide how hot. Start with 2 teaspoons of red chilli powder if you're unsure and build from there. The Kashmiri chilli powder is mostly for the deep red colour, not heat.
• Don't skip the tamarind, that tang is what separates a madras from an ordinary chicken curry. If you don't have tamarind, lemon juice does the job, though tamarind gives a rounder, more authentic flavour.
• Madras isn't a creamy curry, so resist the urge to add cream. If you want something milder and richer, our butter chicken recipe is the one to make instead.

If you cook a lot of Indian food, most of these spices are ones you'll reach for again and again. You can pick them up individually from our ground spices range, or browse the full spice collection to stock the pantry.

About the author

We're a small family business based in Brisbane. We've been bringing authentic Indian spices to Australian kitchens since 1995.