Diet by Priyanka
Chicken in a thick red gravy
Bone-in chicken cooked down in a red masala until the gravy clings to the pieces. Per 100 g of cooked yield it comes to 148 kcal, 13 g protein and 6.5 g net carbohydrate, and a 500 g raw batch gives roughly 600 g of finished dish.
Why this dish works
The colour here comes from red chilli powder and slow-cooked tomato, not from a paste or a packet. That matters because most restaurant red gravies get their body from cashew, cream or a spoon of sugar, and all three change what the dish does to your blood glucose.
Priyanka lists this one per 100 g of cooked yield rather than per serving, because bone-in chicken loses water and weight as it cooks and a per-piece figure would be meaningless. Weigh what goes on your plate and multiply.
Bone-in is not a preference, it is the reason the gravy tastes like anything. The marrow and connective tissue give it body that a breast piece cannot.
What you need
From a 500 g raw batch, about 600 g cooked, serving 6:
- 500 g chicken, curry cut, bone-in
- 2 tbsp mustard oil or desi ghee
- 2 medium onions, chopped fine
- 3 medium tomatoes, pureed
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
- 1 tsp red chilli powder, or to taste
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp garam masala
- Salt, to taste
- Warm water, as needed
How to make it
Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed kadhai and fry the onions until they turn a deep golden brown. Rushing this step is the single commonest reason a home gravy tastes thin.
Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for a minute, then the tomato puree with the chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric and salt. Cook until the oil separates from the masala.
Add the chicken and turn it in the masala on high heat for four or five minutes, so the outside of each piece seals.
Add a little warm water, cover, and simmer on low heat for 25 to 30 minutes until the chicken is tender and the gravy has reduced enough to coat it. Finish with garam masala.
Nutrition per 100 g of cooked yield
| Calories | 148 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 13 g |
| Fat | 7.1 g |
| Net carbohydrate | 6.5 g |
| Fibre | 1.8 g |
Figures are per 100 g of the finished dish. A 500 g raw bone-in batch cooks down to about 600 g of yield, so the whole pot is roughly 890 kcal and 78 g of protein across six servings. Onion and tomato account for the carbohydrate.
Who this suits
Thirteen grams of protein per 100 g with the gravy included makes this a workable main course on a weight loss plan, as long as you weigh the portion instead of eyeballing it.
Onion is the carbohydrate in this dish. On a prediabetes plan the fix is fewer onions and a longer cook, not a substitute ingredient.
Have a question about this recipe?
Priyanka answers WhatsApp herself. Ask about ingredient swaps, portion size, or whether this dish suits what you are working on:
There is no charge for a question, and you will be talking to Priyanka, not an assistant.
More from Priyanka’s kitchen
Every published recipe is listed on the low-carb recipes page, with macronutrients listed for each.
If this one worked for you, these are close cousins from the same plans:
- Chicken seekh kebabs with green chutney
- Chicken curry with boiled rice
- Dahi-marinated chicken curry
- Chicken tikka salad with a mayo drizzle
Recipes work best inside a plan built around your history and your routine. To start there, book a Discovery Call with Priyanka.
These meals come from the same plans Priyanka builds for PCOS, thyroid, prediabetes and fatty liver support.
Written by Priyanka Chanana, nutritionist, practising since 2021. Nutrition support runs alongside medical care rather than replacing it.