Chicken korma recipe | How to make chicken korma

Chicken korma recipe with video and step by step photos – Korma is a delicious gravy dish that is usually made of spices, nuts, yogurt, seeds, coconut, vegetables and meat. It is said to have been originated in the Indian sub continent during the Mughal era. Korma can be made with veggies, chicken or even mutton. This recipe of chicken korma will give you a very tasty, creamy and delicious dish.

There are so many ways a korma is made, most of them are adapted to the regional cuisines. So the ingredients used may differ. Most korma recipes use poppy seeds, but I have not use them here instead used almonds and cashews.

Crisp fried onions are one of the main ingredients used in a chicken korma recipe. However I have not used them here but pan fried the onions till golden. Then used to make the paste.

I have marinated the chicken and used just to make the chicken tender.

This chicken korma recipe is one of the best made with minimum ingredients that one can find in most Asian kitchens. This tastes best after 2 hours of preparation as the chicken absorbs the flavors of spices used.

It tastes great with steamed basmati rice, Jeera rice or Indian breads like Naan, roti or paratha.

Tips to make chicken korma

1. Bone-in chicken tastes best in this recipe as the juices from the bones seep to the korma and make the gravy delicious.
2. Marinating the chicken is optional. It is just done to tenderize the meat. If you prefer to skip the step, add all of the marinade ingredients together to the pan along with chicken.
3. A korma curry gets its creamy texture from curd and nut paste. Traditional korma recipe does not use any kind of starch to thicken the curry.
4. The aroma comes from the fried onion paste, take care to fry the onions evenly.
5. If you have a nut allergy just skip the nuts in the recipe and add more yogurt.

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Chicken korma recipe

Chicken korma recipe | How to make chicken korma

Delicious creamy chicken korma made made with yogurt,nuts, spices and onions as the base. This is best served with plain rice, naan, paratha or roti.

Prep Time10 minutes

Cook Time35 minutes

Total Time45 minutes

Servings4

AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )

For marination

• ½ kg chicken (bone-in) (1 to 1.2 lb)
• 1/8 to ¼ tsp ground turmeric or haldi
• 3 tbsps yogurt or curd (plain)
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste (ground or crushed in equal quantities)
• ¾ to 1 tsp garam masala or korma masala
• 1 to 1 ¼ tsp red chili powder (less spicy variety, minimum ½ tsp)
• Salt as needed (I used ½ tsp sea salt)

To saute & make paste

• 1 ½ to 2 tbsp oil or ghee
• 2 green cardamoms
• 1 cup onions sliced
• 6 Cashews
• 4 almonds (optional)
• 4 tbsps yogurt (or ¼ cup curd for paste)

For chicken korma gravy

• 1 small bay leaf or tej patta (optional)
• 4 cloves or laung (optional)
• 2 inch cinnamon piece or dalchini (optional)
• 1 cardamom or elaichi (optional)
• 1 to 2 green chilies slit
• 1 to 1 ¼ cup water for gravy
• salt for gravy as needed (I used about ½ tsp)
• ½ to ¾ tsp garam masala
• 1½ tsp Coriander powder
• ¼ tsp red chili powder (optional, for color)
• 3 tbsps coriander leaves or cilantro chopped

How to make the recipe

Marination for chicken korma recipe

• Marinate chicken with 3 tbsps yogurt, 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste, ¼ tsp turmeric, ½ tsp salt, 1 to 1¼ tsp red chili powder and ¾ to 1 tsp garam masala. 
• Cover this and set aside until needed.

Make onion paste

• Heat a pan with 1½ to 2 tbsps oil and add 2 cardamoms.
• Add sliced onions and fry them evenly until golden brown. 
• Next add cashews and almonds. Cool these completely. 
• Later add the cooled onions and nuts to a blender jar along with yogurt.
• Make a smooth paste of these. Set this aside.

How to make chicken korma

• To the same pan, add 1 tsp oil and heat it.
• Optional – Saute whole spices – bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cloves and cardamom in oil for a min.
• Add green chilli and marinated chicken.
• Fry on a medium heat until the raw smell of ginger garlic paste goes away.
• Then add the onion curd paste. Pour 1 cup water and mix well.
• Add salt, coriander powder and garam masala. If desired you can also add more chili powder for color.
• Mix well. Cover and cook on a low flame until chicken is cooked to tender.
• Cook further till the gravy reaches a desired consistency.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve chicken korma with plain basmati rice, naan, roti or paratha.

Video

Video of chicken korma recipe

NUTRITION (estimation only)

Calories: 405kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 98mg | Sodium: 558mg | Potassium: 398mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 490IU | Vitamin C: 6.4mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 1.9mg

Notes

You may skip the whole spices but they release a nice aroma when added to the hot oil.

If you are a beginner or new to Indian cooking, I highly suggest you to check the supporting step by step photos for best results. Step by step photos with description available below after the recipe card.

Marination for chicken korma

1. Add yogurt or curd and ginger paste to chicken.

2. Add turmeric, chili powder, garam masala and salt.

3. Marinate and set aside for 30 mins.

4. While the chicken marinates, go ahead with the recipe. Heat oil or ghee in a pan. Add 2 to 3 cardamoms. I used a bit more here as we like the flavor.

Preparation for chicken korma

5. Add sliced onions.

6. Fry the onions until golden brown. Turn off the stove. Add almonds and cashews. You can skip almonds if you do not have. Cool this completely.

7. Add the onions and nuts to a blender jar. Pour 4 tbsps curd.

8. Make a smooth paste.

How to make chicken korma

9. Add 1 tsp oil to the same pan and grease it well. Add bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon and cardamom. I used ceylon cinnamon so used more. If you are using Indian one, just use a 2 inch thin strip. Saute the spices for a min. Also add in green chili at this stage.

10. Add marinated chicken.

11. Fry on a medium heat until the raw smell of ginger garlic goes away. This takes about 5 to 7 mins.

12. Add the onion paste. Pour 1 to 1 1/4 cup water.

13. Add salt.

14. Add garam masala and coriander powder. You can also add little chili powder if you prefer red color korma.

15. Mix well. Cover and cook on a medium heat until the chicken turns tender and is soft cooked.

16. Sprinkle some coriander leaves.

Serve chicken korma with rice, jeera rice, roti, naan or paratha.