Chicken Korma Recipe

Chicken korma is a rich, fragrant chicken curry made by cooking succulent pieces of chicken in a rich cashew-based sauce.

Course Dinner

Cuisine Indian

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Servings

Calories 437kcal

Author Shinta

In a pan on the stovetop, dry roast the whole spices on medium heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring it to heat evenly. Once they release their aromas, turn off the heat and let cool.
Transfer the whole spices to a blender jar of spice grinder and grind to coarse powder.
Use 1.5 tablespoons of the garam masala spice mix for this recipe

Marinate the chicken in a mixture of yogurt, red chili powder, turmeric, salt and ginger, and garlic paste (or use minced ginger and garlic). Keep the chicken in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Prepare the cashew nuts for blending - soak them in hot water for 20-30 minutes. After soaking, blend with a couple of tablespoons of water to form a smooth paste. Keep this aside for later.

In a wok, heat the ghee and add the chopped onions. Saute until they are browned. This should take you around 15 minutes.
Once the onions are browned, add the marinated chicken to the wok, and continue to saute, using a spatula to move the chicken pieces around to cook them evenly.
Add the tomato puree, and continue to cook, moving the chicken around to coat them evenly in the spices and tomato puree.
At this point, you can cover the wok with a lid and let the chicken simmer on low-medium heat for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, take off the lid, add in the blended cashew paste and mix well.
Add the garam masala powder, thin the sauce with a little water, and mix well. Ensure that nothing is sticking to the bottom of the wok.
Add 1/4 cup of cream and mix well. Cover the wok with a lid and let the curry simmer for 5 minutes more.
Take off the lid, and check for seasoning. Add salt if needed. Garnish with chopped cilantro and ghee-roasted cashew nuts.

Cashewnuts can be replaced with blanched and peeled almonds
Use Kashmiri red chili powder - it is low on heat, yet adds a nice red color
Browing the onions is key to giving depth and flavor to the chicken korma, do not skip or speed up this step
The garam masala powder can be substituted with store-bought garam masala powder (not curry powder)
Korma always tastes best the day after - make ahead if you can