Pakistani Smoky Tomato Chicken Curry (Karahi-Style)

About This Recipe

This is a home-style take on chicken karahi, the wok-cooked curry that's a staple at Pakistani restaurants and dinner tables alike, built from tomatoes, ginger, garlic and green chile cooked down hard and fast over high heat until the oil separates and the sauce turns thick and glossy. Traditional karahi doesn't typically use smoked paprika, but this version leans into a smoky finish using a quick dhungar technique — a piece of hot charcoal placed briefly in the pot with a drop of oil — to bring genuine smoke flavor without a grill. The defining move of karahi cooking is reducing the tomatoes almost completely before adding the chicken, so the sauce clings to the meat instead of turning into a thin gravy. Everything happens in one wide, heavy pan over consistently high heat; this isn't a simmer-for-an-hour curry, it's a 20-minute high-heat process that rewards constant stirring. Served with naan or roti for scooping rather than rice, this is the curry found at Lahore's Butt Karahi-style restaurants scaled down for a home stove.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 800 gbone-in chicken(cut into pieces)
• 4 tbspvegetable oil
• 5ripe tomatoes(chopped)
• 1 tbspginger-garlic paste
• 3green chiles(slit)
• 1.5 tspsalt
• 1 tspred chile powder
• 1 tspcoriander powder
• 0.5 tspturmeric
• 1 tspgaram masala
• 2 tbspjulienned ginger(for garnish)
• 0.25 cupcilantro(chopped)
• 1 small piecelump charcoal(optional, for smoking)

Instructions

1. 1

   Sear the chicken

   Heat oil in a wide, heavy pan or wok over high heat. Add chicken pieces and sear 5 minutes until the outside turns opaque and lightly browned.

2. 2

   Add aromatics

   Stir in ginger-garlic paste and green chile, cook 1 minute until fragrant.

3. 3

   Reduce the tomatoes

   Add tomatoes, salt, chile powder, coriander and turmeric. Cook uncovered over high heat, stirring often, for 12 to 15 minutes until the tomatoes break down and the oil starts separating at the edges.

4. 4

   Finish cooking the chicken

   Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer 8 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked and the sauce clings thickly to the pieces.

5. 5

   Smoke it (optional)

   Heat a small piece of charcoal until glowing red. Place it in a small steel bowl set in the center of the curry, drizzle with a few drops of oil, and cover the pot immediately for 2 minutes to trap the smoke, then discard the charcoal.

6. 6

   Garnish and serve

   Sprinkle with garam masala, julienned ginger and cilantro. Serve hot with naan or roti.

Variations

• •

  Karahi gosht: swap chicken for cubed lamb or goat and extend the simmer to 45 minutes until tender.

• •

  Add sliced bell pepper and extra green chile in the last 5 minutes for a Peshawari-style version.

• •

  Stir in a spoon of yogurt at the end for a creamier, milder sauce.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 3 days; the flavor deepens overnight. Reheat in a pan over medium heat, adding a splash of water if the sauce has thickened too much.

Frequently Asked Questions