Chicken · Slow cooker adaptation

Slow Cooker Cheat Code Tikka Masala (Heinz Soup Hack)

Chicken tikka masala allegedly started with a waiter, a dry plate of tikka, and a Scottish chef's quick save in the kitchen. This 20-minute version skips the faffing about and reaches for Heinz tomato soup, the secret weapon that turned a curry crisis into a classic.

R By Richard · Adapted from YouTube · Published 28 May 2026
⏱Prep 10 min
🍲Slow cook 6 hr (Low) / 3 hr (High)
🍽Serves 4
SHOCKING Cheat Code Tikka Masala In 20 Minutes!! Heinz Tomato Soup Hack

Source video by YouTube on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.

This is a cheat-code chicken tikka masala built around a tin of Heinz cream of tomato soup, which gives the sauce its signature sweet, creamy backbone. The original is a 20-minute hob recipe, but the same ingredients translate beautifully to the slow cooker, letting the chicken soak up the spiced tomato gravy for hours. Mango chutney, sugar and cream finish the sauce at the end for that classic tikka masala flavour. Serve with rice or naan for a family meal of three to four people.

Slow cooker notes: Original is a 20-minute hob recipe. Adapted by frying the ginger garlic paste and spices first to bloom them (slow cookers won't do this), then transferring everything to the slow cooker with the chicken, chopped tomatoes and tomato soup. Cream, mango chutney and sugar are stirred in at the end to prevent splitting and to balance sweetness, as the chef does in the video.

Editor's note: Chicken quantity not stated in transcript (chef says 'family of three or four' and 'dice some chicken') so set to null. Chopped tomatoes and tomato soup given as 'a tin' with no gram weight stated, so standard UK tin sizes (400g and 400g) are noted but quantities set to 1 tin. Mango chutney quantity not stated (chef says 'add the mango chutney' without measuring). Adapted from a 20-minute hob recipe to slow cooker timings. | Second-pass critique flagged 8 fabricated and 5 quantified issues. See critique.issues for detail.

Ingredients

Main
  • 4 tbspvegetable oil
  • 2 tbspginger garlic paste
  • chicken breast or thigh, diced
Spices
  • garam masala
  • curry powder
  • cumin powder
Sauce
  • 1 tinchopped tomatoes
  • 1 tinHeinz cream of tomato soup
Finishing
  • 1 tspsalt (add late)
  • mango chutney (add late)
  • 1 tbspsugar (add late)
  • 2 tbspdouble cream (add late)

Method

  1. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry briefly to take the rawness out.

    ~2 min

  2. Add the garam masala, curry powder and cumin powder to the pan. Fry for a short time to remove the bitterness and rawness from the spices.

    ~1 min

  3. Add the diced chicken to the pan and stir to coat thoroughly in the spice mixture.

    ~2 min

  4. Tip the spiced chicken into the slow cooker. Add the tin of chopped tomatoes and the tin of Heinz cream of tomato soup. Stir thoroughly to combine.

    ~2 min

  5. Cover with the lid and cook on Low for 6 hours or High for 3 hours, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.

  6. If the sauce is too thin at the end, remove the lid and cook on High for a further 15 to 20 minutes to reduce.

    ~20 min

  7. Stir in the salt and mango chutney. Taste and add the sugar if you want that classic sweet tikka masala flavour. Stir well.

    ~1 min

  8. Let the sauce cool slightly, then stir in the double cream to give the curry its silky, creamy body. Serve with rice or naan.

    ~2 min

Frequently asked

Can I use pre-cooked chicken tikka instead?
Yes. If you've got pre-cooked tikka chicken, stir it through in the final 30 minutes of slow cooking just to warm it through, since it doesn't need long to cook.
Why Heinz tomato soup?
The cream of tomato soup brings sweetness, creaminess and that distinctive tikka masala colour and body in one go. It's the cheat code that does the work of several ingredients.
Can I use single cream instead of double?
You can, but double cream is far less likely to split in a hot sauce. If using single, let the curry cool a little more before stirring it in.
Do I have to fry the spices first?
Yes, this step matters. Slow cookers don't get hot enough to cook raw spices out properly, so blooming them in oil first gives the sauce its depth of flavour.
Can I freeze the leftovers?
Yes. Cool fully, then freeze in portions for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat gently, adding a splash of cream if it needs loosening.
Extraction notes (transparency): Chicken quantity not stated in transcript (chef says 'family of three or four' and 'dice some chicken') so set to null. Chopped tomatoes and tomato soup given as 'a tin' with no gram weight stated, so standard UK tin sizes (400g and 400g) are noted but quantities set to 1 tin. Mango chutney quantity not stated (chef says 'add the mango chutney' without measuring). Adapted from a 20-minute hob recipe to slow cooker timings. | Second-pass critique flagged 8 fabricated and 5 quantified issues. See critique.issues for detail.