Chicken Karahi Inspiration
Chicken Karahi is a famous Pakistani street food dish. I never really looked into Pakistani cuisine until recently when I saw Mark Wiens Pakistan Food & Travel Vlog. He roamed the streets eating what looked like some of the most delicious and flavourful food I’ve seen. What really sucked me in as well was all the food being quite meat heavy. As you all know, I do love my meat. So, taking inspiration from his videos, I started looking into Pakistani food and found inspiration to make some Keto Pakistani food. Specifically, Pakistani chicken karahi looked downright delicious. From what I’ve seen, this is a staple dish to street food and a favourite too.This is just my Keto take on chicken karahi and I hope you like it!
Chicken Karahi Ingredients
- Chicken
- Fresh tomatoes
- Fresh Ginger (julienned ginger)
- Garlic Paste
- Green Chilies or Green Chili Pepper
- Yogurt
- Ghee
- Butter
- Coriander
- Cumin Powder or Ground Cumin
- Coriander Powder
- Red Chili Powder
- Turmeric
- Pepper Powder
- Garam Masala
- Kasuri Meth and/or Dry Fenugreek Leaves
- Julien Ginger
- Tsp salt
*See recipe card down below for exact measurements
Chicken Karahi Directions
- Heat the ghee in a karahi/kadai/wok over medium high heat and season with the salt. Then turn the heat up to high and add the chicken. Fry till most of the pink flesh has turned white and then add in the ginger and garlic paste.
- Continue cooking the chicken till the garlic and ginger is fragrant and the meat is starting to brown. Chop the tomatoes in half and add them to the karahi/kadai/wok. Now at this point you can cover it and cook it like I did or you can add maybe half a cup of water and let it cook uncovered.
- Cook till the tomatoes soften and you can pull off all the skin. Then smash the tomatoes with the back of your spoon to almost puree it. Now add in all the spices, the cumin powder, coriander powder, red chili powder, turmeric, black pepper powder and the garam masala. Give it all a good mix and let it cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Once it’s cooked to your liking then add in the butter, the coriander and the juliennes of ginger. And give it a final good mix and serve with the last green chili chopped and sprinkled on top.
Nutrition Information (Per serving)
- Calories: 515
- Net Carbs: 3g
- Carbs: 4g
- Fat: 40
- Protein: 32g
- Fiber: 1g
This recipe makes 6 servings. Get this recipe on myfitnesspal.
Alternative Ingredients
Definitely try this recipe as originally intended, however, I’m the first to know that sometimes it’s fun to take liberties in the kitchen. The following are just a few ingredients that are sometimes used along with chicken karahi but ones that I have chosen not to use in this version of the recipe.
- Red chilis
- Green bell pepper
- Fresh cilantro, cilantro leaves
- Ginger paste (if you don’t have fresh ginger)
- Garlic cloves (minced garlic will work if you don’t have garlic paste or even know what garlic paste is)
- Tomato puree (this works if you absolutely cannot get your hands on some fresh tomatoes)
Origins of Chicken Karahi
As mentioned above, chicken karahi is a famous Pakistani street food dish. It’s said to have originated in northern and northwestern parts of South Asia. It’s called “chicken karahi” because it’s traditionally made in a karahi, which is a wok, but we call it kadai in India. This is why you might have heard of kadai chicken or chicken kadai as well. This is a karahi which has no handles and the vendors hold it with tongs. You should just watch some of Mark’s vlogs (as mentioned above) to experience it. It’s very cool.
What Do I Eat Chicken Karahi With?
Since we’re on Keto, I generally recommend three things. Definitely my number one choice is Keto naan as it’s simple, easy, and versatile. Option two is cauliflower rice, which if you don’t know how to make, just click here. And finally you can do what’s my favourite, eat with your hands or a spoon!
Other Delicious Keto Chicken Recipes
Looking for more simple and delicious keto recipes? These easy recipes are also chicken-based, so if you like this karahi chicken, you may just like these!
- Keto Chicken Adobo
- Japanese-Style Keto Chicken Wings
- Chicken Rice Bowl
- Three Ingredient Chicken Parmesan
Did you enjoy this chicken karahi recipe? What are some of your favorite chicken dishes? Let me know in the comments below! Also, don’t forget to check out my Youtube page to see many of these recipes in action!
- 1 Kg Chicken Cut into curry pieces
- 400 grams Tomato
- 10 grams Ginger Garlic Paste
- 3 Green Chilies
- 100 grams Yogurt
- 5 Tbsp Ghee Order online
- 1 Tbsp Butter Try this
- 1 Tbsp Coriander
- 1 Tsp Cumin Powder Order online
- 1 Tsp Coriander Powder Order online
- 1 Tsp Red Chilli Powder Order online
- 1/2 Tsp Tumeric Order online
- 1 Tsp Pepper Powder Order online
- 1 Tsp Garam Masala Order online
- 1 Tsp Kasuri Meth/Dried Fenugreek Leaves Order online
- 10 grams Julien Ginger
- 1 Tsp Salt
- Heat the ghee in a karahi/kadai/wok and season with the salt. Then turn the heat up to high and add the chicken. Fry till most of the pink flesh has turned white and then add in the ginger and garlic paste.
- Continue cooking the chicken till the garlic and ginger is fragrant and the meat is starting to brown. Chop the tomatoes in half and add them to the karahi/kadai/wok. Now at this point you can cover it and cook it like I did or you can add maybe half a cup of water and let it cook uncovered.
- Cook till the tomatoes soften and you can pull off all the skin. Then smash the tomatoes with the back of your spoon to almost puree it. Now add in all the spices, the cumin powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, tumeric, black pepper powder and the garam masala. Give it all a good mix and let it cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Next you add in the kasuri methi, two of the 3 green chillies and the yogurt and mix well. If you like it spice then chop the chilies before adding it. Cook uncovered on a high heat till the gravy has thickened to a consistency you like. Normally karahi doesn't have much gravy and it's nice and thick.
- Once it's cooked to your liking then add in the butter, the coriander and the juliens of ginger. And give it a final good mix and serve with the last green chili chopped and sprinkled on top.
5 Comments
Vikash Gaurav
December 7, 2020 at 8:38 amI tried this and it turned out to be AMAZING!!!
Thank you for the recipe.
Millie
December 10, 2020 at 11:44 pmThese ideas are fantastic. I’ve been tossing up whether to give keto a shot for a long time. These recipe ideas are making the decisions so much easier haha. Thank you for your inspirational work. Also, perhaps anyone has come across this keto recipe ebook that I’m trying out. Baby steps though lol. Any thoughts? You can access it for free here: https://bit.ly/3qMX3EI
Linda
February 11, 2021 at 10:08 amSahil, I love your recipes but the background music is super stressful to listen to while watching you create Keto magic in your kitchen. I am definitely going to try this yummy looking chicken dish.
Mehreen
June 2, 2021 at 3:17 pmHi sail. Love your website. I do keto and always crave desi food and your recipes make me feel like I’m close to home.
this is lovely… exactly all the ingredients we use here in Pakistan. Just one suggestion to lift the flavor: use freshly crushed coriander seeds, cumin seeds and black pepper.
Sahil Makhija
June 3, 2021 at 2:23 amThank you I will do that for sure!!