How many calories are in chicken curry and rice?
A home-style chicken curry with a portion of rice, raita and a papadum comes to about 545 kcal. That is with about a tablespoon of oil in the curry. A restaurant version finished with cream and ghee lands considerably higher on the same plate.
The plate, as served
A ladle of home-style chicken curry, a cupped handful of white rice, three tablespoons of raita and one fried papadum.
Where the calories come from
| Nutrient | Grams | Calories | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein | 30g | 120 | 22% |
| Carbs | 59g | 236 | 44% |
| Fat | 20g | 180 | 34% |
| Fibre | 4g | counted within carbs | |
The ring is sized by calories, not grams: protein and carbs are 4 kcal a gram, fat is 9. Drawn by grams, fat would look like a sliver of what it actually contributes.
What is on the plate
| Chicken curryA ladle, about 150 g | 245 kcal |
| White rice, cookedA cupped handful, about 150 g cooked | 195 kcal |
| Papadum, friedOne, about 13 g | 60 kcal |
| RaitaThree tablespoons, about 60 g | 45 kcal |
The same dish, several ways
This is where the calories actually move. Not the ingredient, the cooking.
- A takeaway portion1,045+500
Two ladles of curry and a bigger rice. This is what actually arrives in the box.
- With bread as well as rice765+220
Two chapatis alongside the rice, which doubles the starch.
- A ladle of home-style chicken curry, a cupped handful of white rice, three tablespoons of raita and one fried papadum.As served545
- Roasted papadum instead of fried525-20
Twenty kcal each. Most people have three.
Where each number comes from
Composition tables list ingredients, not dinners. There is no row anywhere for this plate, so it is built from its parts, and the preparation assumed for each part is written next to it, because that assumption is usually worth more calories than the ingredient.
| Component | Portion and preparation | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken curry | A ladle, about 150 gHome-style, onion and tomato base, about a tablespoon of oil per portion. A restaurant curry with cream or extra ghee runs considerably higher. | 245 |
| White rice, cooked | A cupped handful, about 150 g cookedBoiled or steamed in water, no fat added. | 195 |
| Papadum, fried | One, about 13 gDeep-fried. | 60 |
| Raita | Three tablespoons, about 60 gWhole-milk yoghurt with cucumber. | 45 |
| Total | 545 | |
Sources: Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (ICMR-NIN), USDA FoodData Central. Every figure is an estimate with a range around it, and is rounded to the nearest 5 kcal rather than pretending to a precision that does not exist.
Why you will see 400 to 1400 kcal quoted for this
Home curries use a tablespoon of oil. Restaurant ones start from a pre-made base gravy with considerably more, and the portion is bigger. Both get published as "chicken curry".
Which is why this page shows the sum instead of asserting a total. Build the plate you actually eat and the number is yours rather than an average of strangers.
Build your own plateCommon questions
- How many calories are in chicken curry and rice?
- About 545 kcal for a home-style curry with rice, raita and a papadum. A takeaway portion with double the curry and rice is closer to 1,050.
- Why is takeaway curry higher in calories than home curry?
- Restaurants build from a base gravy made with a lot of oil, often finish with cream or butter, and serve larger portions. The chicken is the same.
- How do I eat curry in a calorie deficit?
- Cook it yourself with a measured tablespoon of oil, keep the rice to one cupped handful, and roast the papadums. The curry itself does not need changing.
- How many calories is a papadum?
- About 60 fried, 40 roasted. It is small until you have had four.
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