How to Thicken Curry

Learn how to thicken curry with easy cooking methods and using thickening ingredients. All these methods are tested and perfected in my kitchen. Turn the runny curry into a thick, smooth, and velvety curry texture.

Many of my friends are asking how to thicken curry. If you are looking the same then here I am going to share some quick and easy hacks that will make a perfect curry sauce for your next meal.

Jump to:

• What is curry?
• The Secret of Good Curry
• Why the Curry is Watery?
• Cooking Methods To Thicken Curry
• 1) Sautéeing
• 2) Simmering
• 3) Lid on and off
• 4) High Flame Cooking
• Ingredients to Thicken Curry
• 1) Yogurt or Cream
• 2) Tomato Paste
• 3) Butter
• 4) Ground Nuts
• 5) Lentil Puree
• 6) Veg Puree
• 7) Slurry (With Corn flour or Cornstarch)
• 8) Roux
• Use Curry Powder
• Thick Curry Recipes
• Q & A
• Related Recipes
• How to Thicken Curry

Curry changes its flavor according to the region and culture. As it’s popular all around the world so every country has some famous curry dishes. Japanese, Thai, Indonesian, Chinese, and even in America, you can find the best dining options to have curry of your taste. Whether it’s a tteokbokki, rendang, green Thai, or Indian Veg curry. Strong, earthy, savory, and a little spicy taste of curry dominates in all curry recipes.

Making One pot curry with thick, smooth, and consistent texture is not a big deal. You just need to focus on few areas to get the best results.

Let’s delve into it!

What is curry?

Curry is the delicacy of South Asian cuisine refers to any dish loaded with sauce or gravy. It could be a meat curry, veg curry, or a combination of meat and veg. It can be prepared in a variety of ways depending upon the dish and spices that are used to make curry.

People connect it to the Tamil word ‘Kari’ but it’s more British used during Indian Colonization. It’s a combination of different spices in form of powder cooked with the broth of meat and veg. It’s so comforting and satisfying if you have a consistent soupy curry in your meal.

The Secret of Good Curry

If your curry shows a smooth, consistent, and viscous pattern well blended with all the spices and other ingredients then it looks like a good curry.

To make a good curry, you need to focus on few areas:
1. Cooking temperature: Yes, it’s very important to manage different levels of temperature during cooking. Sometimes, you need high flame and for many hours, you need slow heating. Whatever the recipe, you are following focus on the temperature to get good results.

2. Curry spices: Make sure which type of spices are used in your curry. Powder, coarsely ground, or whole spices. It makes a good difference to maintain the texture of the curry sauce.

3. Gravy Binding Agent: As you will move down, I am discussing in detail gravy or curry sauce agents that can easily thicken your curry.

4. Water: If the water content is high in your curry, it looks watery or runny. If it’s low then it could be dry or thick. A good curry sauce needs to be firm, smooth, and consistent.

5. Major Ingredients: It depends on your curry dishes like meat, veggies, or both. It really makes a big difference in your curry taste and maintains consistency.

Why the Curry is Watery?

If there is a lacking of adherence in water, oil, and curry spices that means your curry is watery and it needs to be fixed before serving.

Runny curry with a blended soupy texture is acceptable but if it’s showing inconsistency like you feel water is visible then you have to cook at high temperature by adding some binding agents with quick stirring to make it fixed.

Cooking Methods To Thicken Curry

1) Sautéeing

It’s important to properly saute the initial ingredients in your curry like ginger garlic and onion. If it’s well cooked at a specified temperature then it has a tendency to blend well with other ingredients of curry.

Many of my friends must be thinking to use paste. Yes, you can! but still, you need proper timing to saute the ingredients with oil or butter.

For example, if you are making Indian lamb curry then you need to properly saute the onion, ginger garlic then add meat to cook at a high temperature.

Another example, if you are making honey garlic chicken breast then you must need properly cook chicken breast on high heat and then need to saute garlic paste on medium heat. After, you can add soy sauce to make perfectly well-blended gravy.

2) Simmering

Yes, there is no doubt simmering is the best cooking method to thicken the curry. It requires to cook curry below the water boiling point. If you are making meat curry then it perfectly fits. Simmering not only thickens the curry but also saturates the meat broth to enhance the flavor.

Simmering the slow heating process that takes time to thicken gravy. If you want to expediate the process then switch to High flame cooking.

3) Lid on and off

This is the most effective technique to thicken the curry and mostly used in Indian cooking. You can remove the lid and cook on high heat to evaporate excess water. As the water level reduces, place the lid and cook on steam to have thick gravy with floating oil on the surface. If you have a big pot then thicken process will be fast compared to small pot.

4) High Flame Cooking

Similar to lid on and off but here, you will only cook on high flame to cook the curry. Most apply to thicken chicken curry. Restaurant chefs use this method to cook quick dishes with curry. Chicken Karahi is the best example of high flame cooking.

Ingredients to Thicken Curry

Here are 7 Ingredients to thicken the curry like a pro.

1) Yogurt or Cream

Use thick or Greek style yogurt to thicken the curry. The particles in yogurt have a great tendency to blend with curry spices which will not only thicken the curry but also improve the taste. Use the amount of yogurt as per your curry quantity. If you want to reduce 1 cup of water then add 1 tablespoon of yogurt on medium flame and give it a quick stirring to blend with spices. Mostly yogurt is used in Indian cooking not only as a binding agent but to add taste to gravy.

Cream is an alternative to yogurt and is used in several types of curry to give a creamy rich look. Here is the example of Creamy Garlic Chicken.

2) Tomato Paste

Yes, you can use the paste of fresh tomatoes. Remove the skin and blend it. It will work as a soft thickening agent with sweet, sour, and tangy flavor. Mostly used in Indian cooking. Indian chicken tikka masala is the best example.

On the other hand, the canned tomato paste will work as a hard thickening agent with a strong umami flavor. Mostly used in British-style chicken tikka masala recipe.

3) Butter

If you want to thicken your curry with luster then nothing is good than butter. Most people skip butter with clarified butter (desi ghee) which is also good and add flavor to curry. 

4) Ground Nuts

Ground almonds, cashews, peanuts, and walnuts work best to thicken curry. In Indian cooking, most of the Mughal recipes use grounds nuts in curry not only for thickening but to add taste.

Here is the example of Shahi Chicken Korma | Mughlai Chicken | Peanut butter curry

5) Lentil Puree

Boil the lentils that you like with salt and peppers and blend it to make a nice puree. Now you are ready to use in your curry sauce.

6) Veg Puree

If you are making hard time to thicken curry with meat then veg puree can easily do the job. You can use the blanched vegetable of your choice and make a thick paste just by blending and add in a curry. It will improve the taste and keep you relax from thickening process.

Spinach puree is the best. Alternatively, you can use potatoes, pumpkins, carrots, and cauliflower.

7) Slurry (With Corn flour or Cornstarch)

Normally used in Chinese style cooking. You can thicken the stew, soup, gravy or any curry.

Slurry can be prepared by adding cornstarch or corn flour with water or stock (broth) then added to hot liquid soup, sauce, or curry. Keep stirring while pouring otherwise the lump will form. It will make a quick transformation to thicken curry so precisely monitor the quantity.

Here is the example of Chicken with Garlic Sauce.

8) Roux

In simple words, roux is the cooked form of slurry which I feel has better taste. More like nutty flavor as the cornflour or conrstarch cooked with butter to make a desired brown color then liquidate with water, broth or milk. Simple and easy way to thicken curry with roux.

Use Curry Powder

Yes, curry powder can make a big difference in your curry consistency. It has balanced spices that can make a good curry by saving your time.

Thick Curry Recipes

Q & A

How to thicken Chicken Curry?

You can simply use yogurt, or tomato paste. Apply lid on and off method with high temperature.

How to thicken coconut milk curry?

Use slurry! if you don't want to use then cook on high heat. Keep stirring for few minutes and it will turned to thick, velvety texture.

How to thicken without flour or cornflour?

Use veg, lentil or nut puree as per your curry requirements.

How do I thicken curry sauce in a slow cooker?

Slurry is helpful here! Also check veg or lentil puree.

How to Thicken curry in Instant pot?

Yes, you can thicken at saute mode. Also take help with binding agent like corn flour, or puree.

Can I thicken curry with plain flour?

Yes, you can! It will change the flavor. Famous example is Nihari.

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