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The Most Comforting Roasted Sweet Potato and Chicken Tikka Masala

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A large, warming bowl of goodness. Super flavourful roasted sweet potatoes with juicy chicken, all tossed in a creamy sauce full of Indian spices. Take the Indian Classic and make it healthy and super delicious! Family friendly, vegan option, easy to make, perfect comfort food.

I love these Sundays, where you just relax all day long and when it comes to dinner, the whole family goes into the kitchen and cooks together. Something cozy, something comforting to round up the week. Something that warms you from the inside and makes your soul feel warmed. These are my favourite kind of dinners. And this Tikka Masala definitely is the ideal meal for such occasions!

What’s tikka masala?

Tikka Masala is a dish from in the Indian cuisine. Actually, it has been invented in Scotland by an Indian Chef. He originally made it with chicken, cream, yoghurt and spices. It also is called „Butter Chicken“ sometimes and nowadays is one of the most popular Indian Recipes around the world.

What’s special about this dish?

We are taking a regular curry and taking it next level while making it healthy! Instead of cream and butter we go for coconut milk, since this is a healthier and lighter version. Also, we don’t only do chicken, no, we add some sweet potatoes for even more flavour & vitamins. Plus, we are roasting, both the chicken and the sweet potato beforehand to bring out the flavour even more.

Is it healthy?

I would not see a reason why not. It is a completely balanced meal. Due to the chicken (that you could sub for chickpeas for example) we make sure to get enough protein in! The sweet potatoes are a great source of carbohydrates, fibre and they also are loaded with nutrients and vitamins. The greek yoghurt and coconut milk add a healthy amount of fat and even more protein.

Not to forget about all of the good Indian spices. Spices, when consumed in moderation, can have tremendous health benefits ranging from improving your digestion to preventing cancer. Crazy what these little powders can do right? When served with some rice or naan you get even more energy from the carbohydrates! So all in all, definitely a very balanced and nutritious meal!

How to make it:

We start by tossing the chopped sweet potato and chicken with some oil and spices before roasting them. As already mentioned, roasting them really brings out the flavour and it shortens the cooking time after. In the meantime we are preparing the curry paste which we need for the sauce. For this you need a food processor or a blender of some kind. To make this paste you need to blend together some onion, garlic, ginger and more spices and fry that off in oil so it gets fragrant. Once your whole kitchen smells like an Indian market, you need to add the sweet potato and chicken and also the coconut milk. Now we just let it simmer and intensify its flavour. Before serving, we stir in some greek yoghurt for extra creaminess and richness. Now it is time to garnish it with some greens, cashews and serve with rice or naan!

When and how to best have it?

Up to you! I love it as a cozy dinner but it also works great for meal prep. Actually, all curries work very well for meal prep because they only enhance their flavour the longer they are in the fridge. You can make this beforehand and just heat it up whenever you feel like it.

In terms of what to best serve it with, you could go for rice or naan or both (my favourite :)). But also something like quinoa, wholegrain rice or buckwheat would work great!

Substitutes/ vegan option:

  • Sweet Potatoes – pumpkin, cauliflower
  • chicken – chickpeas, tofu
  • greek yoghurt – regular yoghurt, plant based yoghurt

I hope that you will genuinely enjoy this as much as I do because I am really obsessed with this, especially on the colder days! Have fun cooking this and enjoy eating it!

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Super Comforting Roasted Sweet Potato and Chicken Tikka Masala

Heavenly comfort food in a bowl. Indian spices in a creamy sauce with perfectly roasted and juicy chicken and sweet potato

Course dinner, Main Course
Cuisine Indian
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 20 Minuten
Total Time 30 Minuten
Servings 4 servings

What you will need

For the sweet potato & chicken

  • 1 tbsp Graham Masala
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp chili flakes
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp ginger powder
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 600 g Sweet Potato (1 large one)
  • 600 g chicken breast

For the rest:

  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 thumb-sized piece of ginger
  • 1,5 tsp graham masala
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp chili flakes (optional)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 400 ml canned tomatoes (puréed)
  • 1 can coconut milk
  • 100 g greek yoghurt
  • rice, naan to serve with
  • cilantro and cashews to garnish

How to

First:

  1. Chop up the sweet potato into about 1 cm sized cubes. Cut the chicken (if using) into bite sized pieces. Combine the spices with the oil. Toss the sweet potato and chicken with the oil-pize mixture and lay out on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake at 180°C for 10 minutes.

  2. In the meantime blend the onion, garlic, ginger and remaining spices together until it has become a smooth paste. When the roasting is done, heat up theremaining oil in a pot and fry the curry paste in it for about 2 minutes until fragrant. Add the sweet potatoes, chicken, canned tomatoes and coconut milk. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 10 minutes on medium-low heat.

  3. Before serving stir in the greek yoghurt. Then divide onto bowls and serve with some rice or naan. Garnish with fresh cilantro and cashews. Enjoy!

Love,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Curry Noodle Soup with Lemongrass Meatballs

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This dish honestly is one of my favourite things I have ever made. It is just so good. And so family friendly. The combination of a creamy slightly spicy and refreshing soup with fresh vegetables, dense meatballs and soft noodles. It just is so good. Unbelievable good.

It is something the entire family will love. Meatballs are always a family staple in my opinion and noodles are too. If there are family members who don’t eat meat, they only do veggies and noodles, if there are some who are not the biggest fan of vegetables they can leave them out. It is really versatile and really good.

I do not know how I came up with that Idea but I think I somehow wanted a curry and a noodle soup at the same time so I combined it. And I knew I couldn’t go without some meat for my brother and my dad so I decided to try out something different, something that could easily be eaten in a sop and decided to go for meatballs.

Ground chicken or veal work best for the meatballs but pork or beef works fine too. I have to say though, that I have never tried it out with vegetable mince, because I am worried that this will probably fall apart. Other than the meat in the balls go some lemongrass, fresh is best but dried (in powder) works alright too, some ginger, garlic, soy sauce and cornstarch to hold everything together. It all is diced up finely and then mixed together before being formed into meatballs.

As the base of the soup we use chicken broth because it has most flavour and add in ginger, lemongrass and spring onions to add some asian flavours to the broth. This is all being poured over some curry paste and after simmering for a little while also some canned coconut milk goes into the pot. Coconut milk is such a great addition into soups because it makes everything so much creamier and richer plus it adds a ton of flavour. It really is a healthy go-to for soups!

To finish the meal of we add some pasta to the soup for some carbs and texture. Here I recommend using soba ur glass noodles. Soba noodles are my preferred choice. They originally come from Japan and are made from buckwheat flour. They taste super delicious and have more fibre and protein than regular pasta. If you do not find them near you, you can also substitute them for glass noodles.

And of course, we need some vitamins too, so we are adding some vegetables! Here you can use whatever is in your fridge! Personally, I would recommend using mushrooms, carrots, pak choy, cauliflower, asparagus an broccoli. but if you have any other favourites you are free to add them!

Preparing it all takes a little time because everything needs to be chopped but it is a fun thing to do. Especially forming the meatballs is something kids will love.

I love making this dish as a lunch or a delicious dinner because it is packed with flavour, and nutrients. The entire family loves it and you can still enjoy it the next day if there is something left over (although there probably will be none)!

I hope that this gives you some inspiration to cook good and healthy food for your entire family or just for yourself.

Happy cooking,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

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Curry Noodle Soup with Lemongrass Meatballs

Best soup you will ever make. Spicy and creamy base with dense deliciously fresh meatballs, soft vegetables and dedicant noodles. The best thing ever.

Course bowl, dinner, lunch, Main Course
Cuisine asian, thai
Prep Time 30 Minuten
Cook Time 30 Minuten
Total Time 1 Stunde
Servings 4 servings
Calories 596 kcal

What you will need

For the Meatballs:

  • 400 g ground chicken
  • 1 stalk lemongrass
  • 4 cm ginger
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 spring onion
  • 1 tbso soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp cornstarch maybe a bit more
  • 1 tbsp oil

For the soup:

  • 25 g curry paste
  • 1,5 l chicken broth
  • 2 stalks lemongrass
  • 6 cm ginger
  • 2 spring onions
  • 400 ml coconut milk (1 can)
  • 100 g mushrooms *
  • 100 g broccoli *
  • 100 g carrots *
  • 100 g cauliflower *
  • 1 pak choy
  • 150 g soba noodles
  • some fresh spring onions

How to

That is how it works:

  1. For the meatballs peel and mince the lemongrass, ginger and spring onions finely. Combine them in a bowl with the ground meat, soy sauce and the cornstarch. Mix everything well. It shoudl form a sticky consistency so you can form meatballs. It it is not sticky enough, add more cornstarch.

  2. Take one heaped tablespoon at a time from the meat mixture and form it into balls. Heat up the oil in a large pot and fry the meatballs in it for about 10 minutes. Take them out and set them aside.

  3. In the meantime cut up the ginger, lemongras, and spring onions into larger chunks. Combine the curry past with about 3 tablespoons of the coconut milk.

    In the hot pot quickly fry the ginger, lemongras, and spring onions for about 2-3 minutes. Take them out and place them in a tea bag or sieve so they can cook with the broth later. Add the curry paste mixture into the pot any fry this for about one minute before you add the broth and the tea bag. Bring everything to a boil.

    In the meantime chop all of the vegetbales you are using into bite-sized pices. Add in harder veegtables that need longer to cook, like carrot and cauliflower now and boil them for about 5 minutes.

    In the meantime prepare the pasta according to package intructions.

    After the 5 minutes, add in the other vegetables and coconut milk and take out the tea bag. Let everything simmer for another 3-4 minutes.

    When the noodles are done cooking strain them and set aside.

  4. To serve add some meatballs and pasta into a soup bowl. Next, pour the soup and vegetables over and garnish with some spring onions and fresh cilantro. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • you can use any vegetables you have in your fridge, they do not need to be those exact ones, 

Harvest Buddha Bowl with Apple Chicken

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When the weather is getting cold outside we are very likely to crave some hearty comfort foods! Unfortunately these foods mostly are not the healthiest as there are simply not as many colorful vegetables as in spring for example. BUT there still are some! So there actually is no excuse to eat a healthy, utrient-packed, hearty meal in fall. I know that it is a little harder since there are not too many vegetables in season but still quite some. To make it easier for you, I decided to share a recipe with you for a Fall Harvest Buddha Bowl!

Buddha Bowls are bowls which are made up of several different ingredients, which are cooked, baked, and raw, and a dressing. They are packed with every nutrient group and make a perfect balanced meal. In order for you to experiment a little with creating such bowls, I have a little Buddha Bowl Guide for you here:

1.The base

The base usually consists of some type of carbohydrate. It gives structure, fills you up and provides you with energy. Best is using a cooked whole grain such as

  • Brown Rice
  • Quinoa
  • Bulgur
  • Couscous
  • Buckwheat

If you are low-carb, simply substitute the cooked grain with some greens. 

2. Greens:

The greens here add some color and a bunch of nutrients. Here you are totally free and can use whichever you prefer/ like the most! Depending on what you have chosen, you can either add it raw, cooked, or steamed. For example:

  • Kale
  • Spinach
  • Swiss Chard
  • Lambs lettuce
  • Lettuce

3. Vegetables:

3.1: Baked/ Pan Fried Vegetables: The baked vegetables add some heartiness to the dish, as well as some texture. Simple drizzle them with some oil and spices and pop them into the oven. Here I like to use:

  • Sweet Potato
  • Pumpkin
  • Brussel Sprouts
  • Cauliflower
  • Mushrooms
  • Zucchini
  • Bell Peppers

3.2: Boiled/ Steamed vegetables

For the Boiled/ Steamed vegetables I like to use vegetables of which I prefer the taste when being boiled or steamed. If you do not want to use and extra pot, you can also go ahead and add them to the baking tray or eat them raw. Vegetables that I prefer to steam/ boil are

  • Beets
  • Broccoli 
  • Green Beans
  • Asparagus
  • Corn
  • Peas

3.3: Raw vegetables:

Adding raw vegetables to your Buddha Bowl is important. They add some crunch, and they (mostly) contain more vitamins than heated ones. Plus, they also add some extra crunch and freshness, which works great in combination with the remaining ingredients. The best ones here are:

  • Tomatoes
  • Carrots
  • Celery
  • Cucumber
  • Bell Peppers
  • Radishes

4. Protein

A source of protein is essential when building a Buddha Bowl! It makes the dish a complete meal as it adds nutrients. Also here you can be really creative and add whatever you like! Some options are:

  • Chicken
  • Tofu
  • Prawns
  • Tempeh
  • Edamame
  • Beef
  • Lentils
  • Beans

5. Fruits:

I know, adding fruits into your meal may sound a little bit weird but in this case, it definitely is not. The combination of adding something sweet with the savory is incredibly delicious and fruits also add a great freshness. In most cases it is best to use them raw, but with some fruits it works if they have been cooked too (I cooked my apples with the chicken, and this tasted really good too!). Here you can use

  • Grapes
  • Apples
  • Berries
  • Mango
  • Pomegranate Seeds
  • Stone fruits
  • Literally, everything available

6. Dressing

The dressing is maybe the most important ingredient of the dish because it packs everything together and combines the flavors. It coats the entire dish, which means that if you dressing doesn’t take amazing, your entire dish will be rather bad. Here you can use your favorite salad dressing or get a little more creative. If you want something thicker, to dip your bowl-ingredients into, that works great too! Examples are..

  • Balsamic Vinaigrette
  • Hummus
  • Mashed Avocado
  • Tahini Sauce
  • Yoghurt Dressing

7. Topping:

This is the last, but definitely not least ingredient in this dish. Here you have the last option to add some healthy fats and crunch. I like to top this with some nuts or some chopped up vegetables like

  • Walnuts
  • Spring onions
  • Coconut chips
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Pepitas
  • Nori

For this bowl I used one or two ingredients from every group. I used Bulgur (Carbohydrate), Kale (as a green), Sweet Potato (as a roasted vegetable), mushrooms (sautéed vegetables), beetroot (steamed vegetable), Carrots (raw vegetable), chicken (protein), Grapes & apple (fruits), Dijon-Tahini-Sauce (dressing), and walnuts (topping). 

This together makes an awesome combination off several super delicious and nutritios fall ingredients into one bowl. The flavors work really great together. If you tend to ave prepared some of those ingredients ahead of time and store them in the fridge, which a lot of people have, then this bowl comes together really quick. This meal is a great way to enjoy all the fall ingredients, I hope you like it!

If you decide to recreate this recipe, share it with me on intsagram with @uneptcuisiniere or #unepetitecuisiniere and be sure to leave a comment, thank would mean a lot to me!

Enjoy!

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Fall Harvest Buddha Bowl

A delicious meal that packs all the delicious fall ingredients. A perfectly balanced meal with all the food groups. Super delicious and comforting!

Course bowl, dinner, lunch, Main Course, Salad
Servings 2 bowls
Calories 586 kcal

What you will need

For the Chicken

  • 150 g Chicken
  • 0.5 tbsp Oil
  • 1/2 apple
  • 100 ml white wine
  • 2 tbsp apple sauce
  • 100 ml water

For the remaining bowl:

  • 60 g Bulgur
  • 150 g Sweet Potato about 1/2
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp paprika powder
  • 100 g mushrooms
  • 1 cooked beetroot
  • 1 carrot
  • 2 handful kale
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp Oil
  • a few seedless grapes
  • 10 g walnuts

For the dressing:

  • 1 tbsp Tahin
  • 2 tbsp orange juice
  • 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 2 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • 1 tsp Honey

How to

Thats how it works:

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Cut the sweet potatoes into 1cm sized chunks. Coat them with the tbsp of oil, the paprika powder, and the cinnamon. Place it on a baking tray and bake it for 10 minutes. Take it out, add the mushrooms, stir it all around and bake it for another 15 minutes.

  2. Meanwhile prepare the bulgur according to the package instructions.

  3. In a pan heat up the oil for the chicken. Chop the apple into small cubes. Once hot, add the apple into it and sautee it for 2 minutes. If using one chicken breast cut it in half, so it is thinner and will cook faster. Add the chicken breast to the apple and fry it on both sides for about one minute. Add the wine, apple sauce and water and let it simmer for 8-10 minutes.

  4. Massage the kale with the lemon juice and set aside. Grate the carrots and slice up the beetroots. Half the grapes and chop up the walnuts.

  5. For the dressing add all the ingredients into a food prosessor and blend until smooth. If too thick, add some more water.

  6. By now the sweet potato and bulgur should be done too and it is time to assemble.

  7. Seperate the ingredients onto two bowls. Drizzle the dressing over everything, serve & enjoy!