Chicken Korma is a rich, creamy, mildly spicy and flavorsome dish. Korma gravy belongs to Mughlai cuisine and its very aromatic gravy made using some whole spices, coconut and cashew nuts. There are many variations to korma within regions of India. Some like to make the gravy using only coconut milk while some use just cashew nut paste. Traditionally, it is made with lots of cream but to make it little lighter, I have used yogurt, cashew nuts and shredded coconut. This is my version of Chicken Korma and it is seriously delicious.
This recipe is quick, simple and requires very basic Indian spices like bay leaves, star anise and cardamom. It does need some pre-preparations which is marinating chicken and making cashew-coconut paste. I like to marinate chicken in advance and let it sit for at least 30 minutes and it makes chicken more tastier and juicer. For this recipe, I like to use drumsticks or chicken thighs or mix of both. But, you can also use chicken breasts cut into small pieces which takes less time to cook.
Blended cashew nut paste is very common in Indian curries, especially the creamy ones. It gives that richness and smooth texture to the curry. Also blended paste like this helps thicken the sauce.
Chicken Korma
Ingredients
For Marinating Chicken
- 5-6 Chicken Drumsticks skinless or Chicken Thighs
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp red chili powder or cayenne powder
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp garam masala
For Cashew-Coconut Paste
- 1/2 cup cashew nuts
- 1/4 cup shredded fresh coconut or desiccated coconut
- 1/2 cup milk or water or coconut milk skip fresh coconut if using this
For Korma Gravy
- 1 medium onion
- 2 small green chilies
- 1 tbsp ginger paste
- 1 tbsp garlic paste
- 1 black cardamom or 2 green cardamoms
- 2 star anise
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp red chili powder
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp coriander-cumin powder
- 2-3 tbsp oil or ghee
- 1/4 cup cream or half and half optional
- Water to adjust consistency
- Salt to taste
- Coriander leaves to garnish
Instructions
For Marinating Chicken
- In a large bowl, mix together chicken, yogurt, red chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala. Cover it and let it sit for atleast 30 minutes.
For Cashew-Coconut Paste
- 1/2 cup cashews soaked in 1/2 cup water or milk for 10-15 minutes.
- In a blender, grind cashew nuts and coconut together with some water or milk into smooth paste.
- Note: You can use coconut milk instead of using coconut. Substitute amount of water with coconut milk.
For Korma Gravy
- In a blender, puree onion and green chilies together.
- Heat some oil or ghee in a pan. Add black cardamom, star anise and bay leaf to it.
- Add onion paste, ginger-garlic paste and let it cook till the mixture starts drying out. It will take around 7-10 minutes.
- Add red chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander-cumin powder and garam masala to it and again cook it for 2-3 minutes continuously stirring.
- Mix in the cashew-coconut paste and marinated chicken. Add 1-2 cup of water adjusting the consistency.
- Cover the lid and cook it for 20 minutes or till the chicken is done. Normally, it done when the meat starts leaving the bone.
- To make it more rich, add some cream or half and half.
- Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with rice or rotis or naans.
