Tender chicken in a tangy, sweet and slightly spicy sauce, made lusciously thick and rich with the addition of red lentils.
This is my easy dhansak recipe – ready in 45 minutes, with at least half of that hands-off time.
The kids love the sweet tang of this curry – and you can easily make it chilli-free to suit all tastes.
Working on curry recipes is becoming a bit of a thing during weekends.
I think we’ve got over 20 curries in our curry section now!
We’ve had quite a few reader requested curries, and I’m slowly starting to build up a collection of side dishes to serve with that old Friday night favourite.
Is there something you’d like to see in there?
What does dhansak taste like?
Dhansak is quite a mild curry with a lovely thick sauce – make thick by the addition of red lentils. The lentils are cooked for long enough that they start to break down in the sauce, which adds a slight creaminess.
It’s also got a tomato flavour, plus a bit of tanginess from pineapple chunks and juice.
Some versions that you get from a takeaway or restaurant can be quite hot. My version is mild, but you can spice it up by adding more hot chilli powder.
What do we need?
- I’m using chicken breast in this curry, but you can replace with chicken thighs if you prefer.
- I’m also using passata. You can replace with tinned chopped tomatoes if you prefer, but there’s already quite a lot of texture in the curry from the lentils, chicken, onion and pineapple – so I prefer to use passata, which is smoother.
How to make this curry
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Soften the onion in a pan with oil or ghee for 10 minutes until lightly caramelised.
- Add chicken, spices, garlic and ginger. Stir together to coat the chicken in the spices and cook for 5 minutes, until the chicken is sealed.
- Add tomato puree, lentils, passata, chicken stock juice from the tinned pineapple. Stir together, place the lid on and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add pineapple pieces and heat through for a further 5 minutes.
- Serve with basmati rice and top with freshly chopped coriander.
What to serve it with
You can serve this tasty dhansak curry with:
- Boiled rice – my no-fail method
- Pilau rice from this recipe
- Chapati
- Onion, mint and tomato salad (simply mix together ½ a bunch of finely chopped fresh mint, 10 quartered cherry tomatoes, 1/4 finely diced onion and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Saag aloo from this Beef Kofta recipe
More Fantastic Curries
- Slow Cooked Beef Massaman
- Chicken Jalfrezi with homemade pilau rice
- Chicken Madras
- Pork Katsu Curry
- Pulled Lamb Curry
- Slow Cooker Butter Chicken
- Rich and Spicy Beef Rendang
- My Vegetarian Curry
Watch how to make it
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Chicken Dhansak Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil or ghee
- 1 large onion peeled and finely chopped
- 3 chicken breasts chopped into large chunks (this is about 525g or 18.5oz)
- 2 tbsp mild curry powder replace with medium or hot if you like it hotter
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp hot chilli powder
- 1 tsp ground fenugreek
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tsp minced ginger
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 1 tbsp honey
- 100 g (1/2 cup) red lentils
- 400 ml (1 2/3 cups) passata
- 480 ml (2 cups) chicken stock
- 435 g (15 oz) tinned pineapple chunks in juice
To serve:
- basmati rice
- fresh coriander (cilantro)
Instructions
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large lidded saucepan (or large frying pan that has a lid) over a medium heat.2 tbsp vegetable oil or ghee
- Add the onion, and cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes, until softened and lightly caramelised.1 large onion
- Add the chicken, curry power, turmeric, garam masala, cumin, coriander, chilli powder, fenugreek, salt, garlic, and ginger.3 chicken breasts, 2 tbsp mild curry powder, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp cumin, 2 tsp ground coriander, 1/4 tsp hot chilli powder, 1 tsp ground fenugreek, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 garlic cloves, 2 tsp minced ginger
- Stir together to coat the chicken in the spices and cook for 5 minutes, until the chicken is sealed.
- Stir in the tomato puree and honey, then add the lentils, passata, chicken stock, and ½ cup (120ml) of the juice from the tinned pineapple.2 tbsp tomato puree, 1 tbsp honey, 100 g (1/2 cup) red lentils, 400 ml (1 2/3 cups) passata, 480 ml (2 cups) chicken stock, 435 g (15 oz) tinned pineapple chunks in juice
- Stir everything together, then bring to the boil.
- Turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes until the lentils have softened. TIP: Give the curry a stir every few minutes to stop the lentils from sticking.
- Add the tinned pineapple pieces and heat through for a further 5 minutes. TIP: You can add a splash of water if the curry is looking a little too thick at this stage.
- Serve with basmati rice and top with freshly chopped coriander.basmati rice, fresh coriander (cilantro)
Video
Notes
Make the curry, then quickly cool, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Reheat in a pan or in the microwave until piping hot throughout. Can I freeze it? Yes, this curry freezes really well. Make the curry, then quickly cool, cover and freeze. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
Reheat in a pan or in the microwave until piping hot throughout. How to scale up and scale down this recipe You can halve or double this recipe using the same ratios of ingredients. Halving the recipe to serve 2 will take the same amount of time to cook as it would to serve 4.
If you double the recipe, it will take 5-10 minutes longer to cook. Nutritional information is per serving NOT including rice
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I had to review immediately after eating this fabulous Dhansak as it was restaurant quality standard!!!
I made only one change as I prefer the traditional smooth sauce. I removed the chicken in the final stages of cooking and blitzed the sauce so it was smooth! I added a few chunky bits of pineapple and it was amazing!
I was brought up on curry’s and my mother always used a side accompaniment of chopped tomato and onion with a splash of vinegar. This was brilliant and well done to Nicky and Chris!
EXCELLENT!
Followed recipe didn’t use pineapple juice or pineapple also increased lentils 150g and only put 1 tsp of honey in good recipe will cook again thanks
Great easy to follow recipe with a excellent taste, only thing I didn’t put in was the pineapple!
This is lovely!! Tried it for the first time today (March 2025). My partner and I loved it. Did the recipe for two, so halved the chicken, lentils, pineapple and onion but kept the spices the same. Also used half a tin of chopped tomatoes rather than passata. Mixed the other half of the tinned tomatoes with a dissolved chicken stock cube. Followed the direction for cooking as stated. Delicious!! Thank you. I will definitely be looking to use more of your recipes!! 😁