Chicken and Chickpea Curry Stew

I haven't made anything to do with curry in a while so I made this stew for lunch two days ago. I just happened to have ground chicken breast in the freezer and I also have a pound of dried chickpeas I'd like to get rid of. All I had to buy was a can of diced tomatoes and yogurt. I had sour cream in the fridge and wondered if that would work better than the yogurt, and decided to test both. I put yogurt in one half and sour cream in the other. They both add different flavors, of course, but I think I prefer this with sour cream. It's so much more creamy and sometimes, I don't like tasting the yogurt in my food especially fat-free yogurt. Maybe whole milk would work better.



This stew tastes better the days after it's been cooked. I had considered either omitting the tomatoes or reducing them by half because the sweet, acidic taste was too strong for me. But sitting in the fridge gave the flavors more time to blend together and so the acidic taste was gone and I didn't mind it at all. Instead of using canned chickpeas, I cooked 1 cup dry and added them all in. I'm thinking about reducing the chickpeas though, as the ratio of chicken to chickpeas seemed a tad low. But here's the recipe as is and see how you like it!



Chicken and Chickpea Curry Stew
From Kalyn's Kitchen

- 1 tbsp + 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 1/4 lb ground chicken or turkey
- 1 large onion, chopped in medium dice
- 2 tbsp sweet curry powder (or any kind you have)
- 1 14.5-oz canned petite dice tomatoes with juice
- 1 15.5-oz canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 12 oz fat free Greek yogurt (if you don't have Greek yogurt, drain regular yogurt in a fine strainer for at least 30 minutes to remove some of the liquid)
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)

1. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a heavy non-stick frying pan, then add ground chicken or turkey, breaking it apart with the turner and sauteing until it is well cooked and lightly browned. This will take 7 to 9 minutes.
2. Push the chicken or turkey to one side of the pan, add the 1 tsp olive oil, then add chopped onions and cook 3 to 4 minutes, until onions are just starting to get some color. Sprinkle onions with the curry powder and cook about 2 minutes more, turning a few times, then stir the onion mixture into the chicken.
3. Add tomatoes with juice and drained chickpeas and let simmer about 5 minutes, or until some liquid has evaporated and flavors are well blended. Turn heat to low, stir in yogurt, and simmer about 3 minutes more. (Don't let it come to a boil after the yogurt has been added.)
4. Season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Serve hot, sprinkled with chopped fresh cilantro if desired. This can be served over rice, but I just ate it in a bowl as a stew.