Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Burmese Chicken Curry
Chicken slow-cooked in an oil-rich onion, garlic, ginger, and turmeric masala until deeply savory.
Burmese · medium · serves 4
prep 20 min · cook 55 min
~709 cal · 75g protein · 15g carbs · 36g fat · 3g fiber · 6g sugars · 7g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Burmese chicken curry (kyet thar hin) is a cornerstone of Myanmar's home cooking, chicken slow-cooked in an oil-rich base of onions, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and paprika until the spiced oil rises to the surface, a hallmark of Burmese curries. Milder than its Indian and Thai neighbors, it is savory and deeply aromatic.
The technique of cooking the aromatics slowly in generous oil ('si pyan,' meaning 'the oil returns') until they meld and the oil separates is central to Burmese curry-making. The result is rich and mellow, built on savory depth rather than fierce heat.
Served with rice and an array of side dishes and relishes, Burmese chicken curry is everyday food across Myanmar.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
2.5 lb bone-in chicken pieces
3 onion, blended
6 cloves garlic, blended
2-inch piece ginger, blended
1 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp paprika
to taste chili powder
2 tbsp
2 tomato
1/3 cup oil
Instructions
1
Marinate the chicken (or mushrooms and potatoes) with the turmeric, paprika, and fish sauce (or tamari).
2
Cook the blended onion, garlic, and ginger in plenty of oil, low and slow, until jammy and the oil separates out.
✎ Chef’s note
Burmese curries are built on a deeply cooked onion base fried in generous oil (si-pyan, "oil returns"). Take it slow until the oil pools out, which is the sign it is ready.
3
Add the tomato and chili and cook down.
4
Add the chicken and a little water and simmer until tender and the oil rises red on top.
5
Serve with rice and a squeeze of lime.
Yangon tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Yangon. Burmese seasoning runs on things that are neither raw nor freshly cooked. Laphet is tea leaf fermented and eaten as a salad with fried beans and garlic, ngapi is fish or shrimp paste behind nearly everything savoury, and oil is used deliberately, left floating clear on top of a curry as the sign it is finished.
🗺️
Myanmar. Mohinga is breakfast, sold from carts before dawn: a broth built on catfish and the pith of a banana stem, thickened with toasted rice or chickpea flour, poured over rice noodles and finished with crisp fritters, boiled egg and lime. Underneath most Burmese cooking is ngapi, fermented fish or shrimp paste, which supplies the salt and the depth.
🌍
Asia. Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, and its food spans the delicate seasonality of Japanese washoku, the chili-fired curries of India and Thailand, and the wheat-and-lamb traditions of Central Asia. Rice, noodles, soy, and fermentation recur across its regions, while ancient spice routes and religious traditions shaped distinct grammars of flavor. Whether from a street-cart wok or a monastery kitchen, eating is deeply communal and ritual-rich.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Myanmar
MohingaMyanmar’s national breakfast: rice noodles in a lemongrass-catfish broth thickened with toasted chickpea flour.
Lahpet ThokeA tea-leaf salad of fermented tea, crunchy fried beans, nuts, and seeds tossed with cabbage and lime, Myanmar's national treasure.
Sanwin MakinA dense semolina and coconut cake topped with poppy seeds, a much-loved Burmese teatime sweet.
Browse all Myanmar recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Myanmar meal
Burmese Milk Tea (Lahpet Yay No Hsat)Drink
Sanwin MakinDessert
Lahpet ThokeLunch
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Frequently asked questions
What is Burmese Chicken Curry?
Chicken slow-cooked in an oil-rich onion, garlic, ginger, and turmeric masala until deeply savory.
Where does Burmese Chicken Curry come from?
Burmese Chicken Curry is a Burmese dish from Yangon, Myanmar.
Can Burmese Chicken Curry be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Burmese Chicken Curry recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Burmese Chicken Curry safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Burmese Chicken Curry take to make?
About 75 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 55 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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