Slow Cooker Mango Chicken Curry

 

When I cook, I follow my craving.  This morning, I woke up with this dire need to eat the mango chicken curry that I sampled yesterday, May 17, 2015 at the fun-filled fundraising event, A Taste of Two Towns, held at the Oakmont Carnegie Library, Oakmont Pa.  The mango chicken curry was prepared by the talented chef of the Pittsburgh Thai Restaurant by Boris in Oakmont, one of the restaurants from Oakmont and Verona participating in the food sampling affair to raise funds for the beautiful Oakmont Carnegie Library.   

The chef and the owner of the Pittsburgh Thai Restaurant by Boris in Oakmont

 





 The crowd enjoying the food at the fundraising event
A Taste of Two Towns, held at the
 Oakmont Carnegie Library, Oakmont Pa.



Thanks to the internet I found a recipe from Simply Recipes that contain ingredients I already mostly have.  I decided to do a slow cooker version of this site's recipe.  I did some adaptations to suit the ingredients I already have or not have and also to adjust to the slow cooking method versus the site's stove top one.  I doubled the amount of chicken required from the recipe as compared to the other ingredients since when you slow cook there is usually more sauce than meat at the end and I do not want to waste the sauce by discarding any left overs.  I also do not have time to concentrate it by evaporating the liquid. 

The resulting dish from slow cooking chicken with curry and mango is divine. The mango gives it a non obtrusive sweetness.  I served it over brown rice.  Here is the slow cooker version of the delicious Mango Chicken Curry.

Slow Cooker Mango Chicken Curry

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Tbsp fresh minced ginger
• 1 Tbsp yellow curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 cups baby carrots
• 1 mango, peeled and sliced (you can also add the seed of the mango and remove it before serving to add to the mango flavor) 
• 1 Tbsp white vinegar
• 1 cup of full fat coconut milk in a can
• 2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup water (only if you are using fresh chicken breast versus frozen ones which have water frozen with them)
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp water
• Salt and pepper
• Green onions or cilantro for garnish
• raisins (optional)

1. Heat oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat or in the slow cooker bowl in saute mode. Add onions, garlic and ginger and stir occasionally till cook about 5 minutes.  Add the curry powder and cumin, cook for a few more minutes.  Stir and if the spices stick, add more oil.

2.  If using a saute pan transfer the sauteed mixture in the slow cooker bowl.  Add the baby carrots, sliced mangoes, vinegar, coconut milk, chicken and the cornstarch slurry into the bowl.   Slow cook for 4 hours at high or 8 hours at low.  I cooked the mixture in an Aroma Brand rice cooker/slow cooker using slow cook setting for 2 hours.

3.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Garnish with green onions or cilantro.

Notes:

1.  You can add additional sliced fresh mangoes at the end as well as raisins if you like for added sweetness or you can put them in small dishes together with cilantro and chopped green onions for your guests to decide whether to add them to the finished dish.

2.  You can serve over rice or with naan bread.