Get ready to ignite a flavor inferno with Trader Joe’s Spicy Chicken Curry, a Goan-inspired dish that’s not just hot, it’s scorch-the-earth spicy. This isn’t your grandma’s mild curry; it’s a full-on taste bud assault, daringly combining blistering heat with succulent pieces of chicken. And let’s not forget the turmeric yellow rice – a vibrant sidekick that’s more than just a pretty face, it’s a turmeric-tinged treasure in its own right.
Update (2024) This dish for some reason has gotten much spicier than when it was released about five years ago. So buckle up!
Every bite is like a round-trip ticket to Goa, minus the airfare but with all the fiery fervor. If your idea of adventure is pushing the culinary heat index to its limits, then this dish is your thrill ride. Mild-mannered diners, consider yourselves warned: this is a spice level that laughs in the face of milk and bread. For those who worship at the altar of all things hot and spicy, Trader Joe’s has delivered a tongue-tingling, tear-inducing, unapologetically bold curry that will have you coming back for more… once you’ve regained your senses, that is. Let’s check it out!
Probably the widest variety of Indian food is in the frozen section where they have many frozen dishes. I won’t call them meals because these should be part of a larger meal, but I know many people use them for lunch at work because they are so easy to put in the microwave and minutes later a flavorful meal. Personally, I wouldn’t want to eat just chicken and rice. I might pair this with my recently reviewed mini spicy pumpkin samosas.
Making this couldn’t be easier, just pop in the microwave for a few minutes and pull off the plastic cover when it’s cooled off. The tricky part is if you want to have the rice under the chicken and sauce and then you need to hold the hot microwave dish the food came in and try and scoop out the rice into a bowl and then try and dump the chicken mixture on top which I tried to do without burning myself for the product shot. You might just eat it out of the packaging, especially if you are at work.
The aromas coming out of the microwave had my nose tingling. It smelled so good and rich. Pulling the plastic aside and having that blast of steam coming off the food was awesome. You could smell the mélange of Indian spices. “Spicy” food at Trader Joe’s is hit or miss.
I wish they had a scale of heat on their food sometimes so you know what you are getting into. I fully expected this dish to be hot but holy cow this is over the top. I was sweating after eating this and I can take the heat pretty well.
Final Thoughts
I really like the deep rich flavors and the nice big chunks of chicken. The rice cooked up perfectly and had a slight flavor from the turmeric. It’s only 360 calories so for a full grown adult it might not be a whole meal. I know I could probably eat two of them unless I supplemented with another thing like samosas.
All in all, it was a welcome, warming spicy dish and I would probably get it again, but I’m not sure I would call it Fiery! I am going to give it 7 Bells out of 10! I had to downgrade the rating because now it’s too freaking hot!
INGREDIENTS:
FIERY CHICKEN CURRY (COOKED CHICKEN BREAST, ONIONS, WATER, COCONUT MILK [COCONUT MILK, WATER], WHOLE PEELED TOMATOES [TOMATOES, TOMATO JUICE, SALT, CITRIC ACID {ACIDIFIER}], DISTILLED WHITE VINEGAR, SPICES, CANOLA OIL, TOMATO PUREE [WATER, TOMATO PASTE, CITRIC ACID {ACIDIFIER}], GARLIC, SALT, GHEE [CLARIFIED UNSALTED BUTTER {SWEET CREAM (MILK), NATURAL FLAVOR}], TAMARIND PASTE [WATER, TAMARIND, SALT], POTATO STARCH, GUM ARABIC, TURMERIC POWDER [SPICE AND COLOR], PAPRIKA OLEORESIN [SPICE], GREEN CHILIES, BAY LEAVES), TURMERIC RICE (WATER, BASMATI RICE, CANOLA OIL, SALT, SPICES, TURMERIC POWDER [SPICE AND COLOR]).
CONTAINS MILK, COCONUT.
NUTRITION FACTS:
Serving size 1 container (269g) | Amount per serving: Calories 360
Total Fat 13g (17% DV), Saturated Fat 5g (25% DV), Trans Fat 0g, Cholesterol 50mg (17% DV), Sodium 620mg (17% DV), Total Carbohydrate 40g (15% DV), Dietary Fiber 3g (11% DV), Total Sugars 1g—Includes 0g Added Sugars (0% DV), Protein 23g, Vitamin D (0% DV), Calcium (2% DV), Iron (0% DV), Potassium (10% DV).
The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
I love REALLY hot food, and recall liking this dish at one point in the past. But recently, this is too hot, even for me. I mean painful to eat hot. I don’t remember it being this hot previously, but gave it a few chances recently and will not be purchasing again. Would give it one star for being so hot it’s not just unpleasant / painful to eat, but borderline inedible.
She’s not just whistling Dixie, folks. This stuff is downright incendiary! And that’s coming from someone who digs and usually welcomes heat. Ok I got it down in the end, but it took some doing. Will never buy this again. I can only imagine serving this to friends. 😱
I bought this again recently and holy cow you are right. It wasn’t very hot before but now, it’s over the top! I adjusted my review to reflect this. Thanks for pointing it out.
I’ll try to be brief. I recently tried both TJ Indian dinners (Fiery Chicken Curry and Lamb Vindaloo) within a week of each other, so my impressions are fresh. I’m no stranger to these dishes, having purchased them from TJ’s for several years and have always enjoyed them. However, this week’s experience was a surprise—the spice level has noticeably increased. Like turned up to 20 on the heat scale. As someone who loves spicy food, even I find it over the top. There’s a fine line between enjoyable heat and overpowering flavor, and sadly, these dishes now fall into the latter category. It seems a misguided attempt to satisfy complaints about the previous spice level. From reading comments, numerous customers have voiced similar concerns, and unless there’s a change, I honestly don’t think they’ll be purchasing those 2 much longer. I know I won’t. Plus, I think TJ needs to clearly indicate any spice adjustments on the packaging to manage expectations. Otherwise, sales may suffer. Well, that wasn’t as brief as I’d hoped.
I’ve said this before in my reviews. Trader Joe’s should put a spice level indicator on their packaging because things you don’t think will be spicy are over the top spicy and things that you would expect some heat, barely have any.