Chicken Korma (Pakistani)
My family's Chicken Korma Recipe (Pakistani) for an ancient fragrant curry prepared with bone-in chicken favored in the Mughal court.
- Prep time
- 30 min
- Cook time
- 1 hr
- Yield
- 8 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 2 lbs chicken
- ½ cup cooking oil
- 1 large onion (see notes)
- 2 tsp crushed ginger
- 2 tsp garlic paste
- 1 cup yogurt
- 6 green cardamom
- 2 tbsp peeled and slivered almonds
- 1 tbsp kewra
- 10 peppercorn
- 6 green cardamom ()
- ½ piece nutmeg
- 5 piece mace
- 2 black cardamom
- 10 clove
- 1 inch cinnamon stick ()
- 2 tsp red chili powder
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tsp coriander powder
Instructions
- 1
Korma Masala
- 2
Dry roast the whole spices for 30 seconds to 1 minute (just till the aroma is released).
- 3
Grind to a powder and mix with the salt, turmeric, coriander, and red chili powder.
- 4
Korma
- 5
Grind the onions to a fine pulp in the food processor. (see notes)
- 6
Heat the oil and saute the onions till they are a medium golden brown.
- 7
Add the garlic and ginger and saute for about 1 minute.
- 8
Add in the chicken and roast it till it turns opaque. (see notes)
- 9
Add in the Korma Masala and saute the mixture for a few minutes.
- 10
Whip the yogurt until it's smooth and add it to the chicken mixture 1/4 cup at a time, roasting the meat until you have a dense curry. (see notes)
- 11
Once all the yogurt has been added, add 2 cups of water, stir, and cover the pot with a lid.
- 12
Cook on low heat for 15 minutes till the curry thickens and the oil separates and rises to the top.
- 13
Uncover, check that the chicken has cooked through, and the curry is the perfect consistency (see notes)
- 14
Add the remaining six crushed pods of cardamom and the kewra. Stir, cover, and let the Korma sit for 5 minutes.
- 15
Plate, and garnish the korma with the slivered almonds. (see notes)