This is one of our favourite comfort meals, and our guests love it too! I adapted it from a recipe I first cooked many years ago, and it’s stood the test of time. It’s an unusual but delicious combination of Indian curry flavours and Asian-inspired ingredients, with sweet pears or apples balancing the savoury mushrooms and creamy curry sauce.
Tender bone-in chicken thighs simmer in that rich, flavourful sauce, making this a wonderfully comforting dinner. Serve it over fluffy basmati rice with fresh cilantro and a simple green salad for a meal that’s colourful, satisfying, and just a little different from your usual curry.
In a nutshell
Brown the chicken with onions → sauté the pears and mushrooms → make a creamy curry sauce → return everything to the pan → serve over basmati rice with fresh cilantro.
Creamy Chicken, Pear & Mushroom Curry
4
servings15
minutes50
minutes1
hour5
minutesKeep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
2 cups basmati rice
8 – 9 bone-in chicken thighs
1 small onion, chopped
2 Asian pears or golden apples, peeled and cut into chunks
8 oz mushrooms (shiitake or white), sliced
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp butter
6 tbsp medium curry paste
4 tbsp all-purpose flour
900 ml chicken broth
250 ml whipping cream
1 tbsp mango chutney
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Fresh cilantro, for garnish
Directions
- Cook the rice. Prepare the basmati rice according to the package instructions. Keep warm until ready to serve.
- Brown the chicken. Season the chicken thighs generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a large, deep skillet or jumbo cooker over medium heat. Place the chicken skin-side down and cook for about 20 minutes, allowing the skin to brown and render its fat.
- Add the onion. Reduce the heat to medium-low, turn the chicken thighs over, and scatter the chopped onion around them. Cook for another 10 – 15 minutes until the juices run clear.
- Cook the pears and mushrooms. Meanwhile, heat the oil and butter in a separate pan over medium heat. Add the pears or apples and mushrooms, and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low and set aside.
- Build the curry sauce. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside. Stir the flour into the onions and pan drippings until well combined no dry flour remains. Add the curry paste and cook for 1–2 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Add the broth. Add the broth gradually, stirring or whisking to prevent lumps. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 4–5 minutes, until the sauce begins to thicken.
- Bring everything together. Add the cooked pears and mushrooms, along with any juices from their pan. Return the chicken thighs to the skillet, including any accumulated juices.
- Make it creamy. Stir in the whipping cream and mango chutney. Simmer gently for another 3–4 minutes, until everything is heated through and the chicken is cooked to a safe internal temperature of 74°C (165°F).
- Serve. Spoon the creamy chicken curry over the basmati rice and garnish generously with fresh cilantro.
Notes
- Asian pears are lovely here because they’re mild, juicy, and subtly sweet. Golden apples are a great alternative and tend to hold their shape a little better during cooking.
- Curry pastes vary in heat and intensity by brand. I used medium curry paste here so it isn’t super spicy but still flavourful. If your paste is particularly spicy, use a little less.
- This is a fair amount of food for four, but leftovers keep well in the fridge for 3–4 days in an airtight container. Reheat thoroughly, adding a splash of chicken broth or water if the sauce has thickened too much.
