Slow cooker pineapple chicken curry

Easy to make, spice it up or down to taste, this slow cooker pineapple chicken curry is full of pineapple-coconut flavor. A tasty, easy meal.

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When it was announced that this week's Sunday Supper theme was going to be coconut in honor of national piña colada day, I initially thought it would be only right to stay on the full piña colada theme and make something with both coconut and pineapple. Unfortunately with being away, I didn't really get my act together in working through any ideas until quite late on and of course what felt like original ideas weren't really, as I saw others looking to do much the same.

Rather than duplicate too much, I wanted to do something different but by now I was committed (in my mind at least) to using both coconut and pineapple. I have already shared a delicious blueberry piña colada and nyonya shrimp and pineapple curry that use both so that took out another couple ideas, but also gave me one too. We love that nyonya curry each time we have it but it's too spicy for my son and he's not a shrimp fan.

It got me thinking about making another curry, one that can be adjusted to taste and was easy as well. This slow cooker pineapple chicken curry is less hot than the nyonya shrimp curry (although you can spice it up if you like), and makes use of the slow cooker for a super-easy, hands-off fragrant and tasty meal.

If you've read much of this blog before, you'll know I have a bit of an odd relationship with the slow cooker: I have gone from never having heard of it, to kind of looking down my nose at it (largely because I hadn't had anything good made in it) to accepting it can be kind of handy and even perfect for certain dishes. Dishes that have a good depth of flavor, and where a longer cooking helps either tenderize the meat or deepen the flavor are prime candidates. Take slow cooker short ribs, or slow cooker pork chili as perfect examples.

This curry has a bit of both of those aspects, particularly building the flavor. As much as anything, though, it's hard to say no to a dish that you leave to get on with things, particularly one that doesn't involve heating up the house in our current weather.

You really could hardly ask for an easier meal than this one, with only the simplest of preparation before leaving the slow cooker to do the work. At the end you add a little more coconut milk and some shredded coconut for added flavor and texture, then you can adjust the flavor if needed - a little more spice or whatever else you feel it needs.

This is more a base kind of recipe that you can adjust as suits you. I ended up making it without any chili so my son would take it then adding some for our servings, so the quantity of chili is a bit of an estimate (and will depend on your chili strength as well).

This slow cooker pineapple chicken curry is a super-easy dish that's got a lovely slightly sweet and tropical flavor from the pineapple and coconut, but has a bit more of a curry flavor going on too that you can adjust to taste. It makes a great hands-off midweek meal, that still has plenty flavor and is pretty good for you, which I'm sure we can all use more of.

Looking for more slow cooker meals? Try these:

• Slow cooker short ribs
• Beef massaman curry
• Lamb rogan josh (a tasty Indian curry)
• Plus see more main dishes in the archives.

Print Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Slow cooker pineapple chicken curry

Easy to make, this curry is gently sweet and comforting.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time5 hours hrs

Total Time5 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Fusion

Servings: 4

Calories: 573kcal

Author: Caroline's Cooking

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Ingredients

• 1 ½ lb chicken 675g, boneless thighs, breast or a mix
• 1 shallot large, or ¼ onion
• 2 teaspoon garlic crushed/grated
• 1 ½ teaspoon ginger
• 20 oz crushed pineapple in pineapple juice 567g - 1 can
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• ¼ teaspoon chili powder or up to 1tsp, or 1-2 fresh chilis, to taste
• ¾ cup coconut milk 180ml, divided
• ¼ cup shredded coconut 20g, desicated - unsweetened

Instructions

• Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
• Grate the shallot/onion and finely grate the garlic and ginger. Add them along with the pineapple, spices and ½cup of coconut milk into the slow cooker and mix. Add the chicken and mix so that the chicken is covered by the sauce. Cook on low for around 5 hours.
• After it has cooked and cooled slightly, add the remaining coconut milk and the shredded coconut.
• Suggested served over rice.

Nutrition

Calories: 573kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 127mg | Sodium: 263mg | Potassium: 639mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 360IU | Vitamin C: 17.4mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 4mg

See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store. 

See all the other coconut-inspired dishes for piña colada day:

Great Starts

• Make Ahead Healthy Piña Colada Breakfast Parfait by Easy Cooking with Molly
• Piña Colada Granola (grain free) by My Life Cookbook
• Piña Colada Pancakes by Dizzy Busy and Hungry

Dive in with Sides and Appetizers

• Easy Piña Colada Salad by April Golightly
• Piña Colada Coleslaw by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Coco-Nutty Main Dishes

• Piña Colada Chicken and Rice by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Pineapple Barbecue Chops with Colada Slaw by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures

"Col-lots-a" Desserts

• Coconut Pound Cake by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
• Cookies and Coconut Cream Popsicles by Books n’ Cooks
• Creamy Dairy-Free Vegan Coconut Ice Cream by Positively Stacey
• Easy Piña Colada Fudge by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Homemade Samoas by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• How to make a Piña Colada Flan by Asian In America
• Island Breeze Piña Colada Panna Cotta by The Weekend Gourmet
• Kheer by What Smells So Good?
• Mini Roasted Blueberry and Coconut Cream Trifles by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Piña Colada Cupcakes by The Redhead Baker
• Piña Colada Energy Balls by Wholistic Woman
• Piña Colada Ice Cream by Palatable Pastime
• Piña Colada Rice Pudding by Hardly A Goddess
• Piña Colada Trifle by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pineapple Coconut Pudding by Magnolia Days
• Samoa Smacky Delicious Mix by Cooking With Carlee
• Toasted Coconut Sour Cherry Sundae by Pies and Plots
• Tropical Fruit Cups by The Freshman Cook

Sweet to Sip Beverages

• Coconut Banana Rum Smoothie by Desserts Required
• Coquito by Monica’s Table
• Lime Coconut Lassi by Food Lust People Love
• Piña Colada Freeze by Grumpy’s Honeybunch
• Piña Colada Smoothie by A Mind Full Mom
• Spiced Piña Colada by Family Around the Table