Chicken Curry in a Hurry

My husband is from South Africa. And in South Africa, there's a lot of Indian food. He was raised eating a lot of curry, but I'm not sure which one of us loves it more. Curry is a favorite of mine, mostly because it is so flavorful. I don't like anything even remotely bland and I LOVE spices. My pantry is full of  interesting spices.

Thats why I'll never forget our experience in a "spice store" in South Africa. The whole store was full of amazing spices in bulk. I had the guy who worked there make me a special curry powder, one that was really flavorful but not too spicy. He dashed around the store, mixing this and that until he had it perfect. There just aren't stores like that around here. But another South African spice we love is the popular Peri Peri- and this is something that is easily found online. I love to use a little of that in my curry dishes to give it more depth and flavor.

But even if you can't get yourself over to South Africa for a Spice Trip, this curry dish is simple to make and tastes great using curry from the grocery store. I found a recipe in a magazine a few years ago that I have adapted for our family and it's now a staple in our home. It hits the spot for my husband who craves his South African flavors.

(For the record, my kids love Indian food. Maybe it's because we've been feeding it to them since they were young, or maybe it's because it's in their blood. But they have inherited our love for food that has a lot of depth and flavor. In fact, whenever we go out to eat for a special occasion like a birthday or something, our kids request our favorite Indian restaurant. Brooke and Whitney think it's hilarious.)

I cook this at least once a month. I have the recipe memorized, everyone in my family likes it, and I always have the ingredients on hand. So it's a nice last minute go-to. This recipe makes enough to feed my family of seven and have a little for left-overs. You can half it if you're not feeding as many. Oh, and if you're worried about it being too spicy for your family, just buy regular curry powder instead of “hot” at the grocery store. It won’t be hot at all. Or you can just cut back on the curry powder a little bit. Enjoy!

Chicken Curry in a Hurry 3 TBS olive oil 1 large onion 41/2 tsp curry powder 1 cup plain yogurt 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 1 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 1 rotisserie chicken 4 cups cooked rice 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Heat oil in a very large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook 7-8 min. Sprinkle the curry powder over onion and cook stirring 1-2 min. Add yogurt and cream and bring to a simmer. Stir in salt and pepper. Shred the rotisserie chicken and add to the sauce. Then add the chopped cilantro. Serve over rice.