Fragrant and lightly spiced, this easy Chicken Korma is one of the most popular Indian curries. What's not to love about tender cubes of chicken bathed in a luscious and creamy sauce?
When you're craving a luscious, guilt-free chicken dish this korma recipe is the one to make! Everything you need for this easy Indian curry can be found at your local grocery store!
Indian food is among my favorites. One pan Indian Coconut Chicken Curry,and Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry as well as this Chicken Korma, are all on frequent rotation here at ACT.
Deeply flavorful, these Indian recipes are all easy to make with ingredients from your local grocery store or your local Indian market If you decide to check out an Indian market, make sure to take my Indian Cooking: Market Guide and Ingredients with you!
Ingredients you will need:
- Chicken - I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts but you could also use boneless and skinless chicken thighs.
- onions
- green chiles - I used jalapenos, but you could also use fresno's or serranos.
- cashews or almonds - raw and unskinned
- garlic
- ginger
- ground coriander
- ground cumin
- garam masala
- vegetable oil
The Easiest Chicken Korma Ever!
Why? No fussing with adding yogurt or cream and worrying about temperatures! That's right, there's NO CREAM in this recipe! A brilliant thickening technique results in a thick, rich and creamy sauce.
Like my Madras curry, you boil the onions, chiles and (in this case) cashews and when tender, puree them. Genius, don't you think?
The puree results in a lusciously thick and smooth sauce. And really, how lovely is that?
Korma Questions!
Korma is a type of curry. "Curry" is a term for a wide variety of dishes flavored with a spiced sauce. Korma has it's roots in Mughal cuisine, which was the court cuisine of India.
Like most curries, there are a wide variety of ingredients that can be used in Korma. A rich and creamy sauce, Korma can be thickened with yogurt, cream or with ground nuts as in this recipe.
You can serve Chicken Korma with rice, flatbreads, yogurt and/or chutney!
How to make Chicken Korma
- Boil the onions chiles and nuts
- Puree the mixture TIP: Since it's hard to judge the heat of a chile, I added only about half the chile and then tasted the puree. This chile was on the milder side, so I ended up adding the rest.
- Saute the ginger and garlic paste
- Saute the chicken and spices
- Add the pureed sauce
- Serve and garnish as desired - I drizzled the curry with plain yogurt, and sprinkled with garam masala and cilantro.
Step 1: Boil the onions and nuts. Step #2 - puree the cooked onions and nuts Step #3: saute the garlic and ginger. Step #4 - cook the chicken and spices Step #5 - add the puree. Step #6 - garish and serve.
Other Indian Recipes you gotta try!
If you liked this recipe, I would love for you to give it a 5 star rating!
Cheers, Nancy
Chicken Korma
Ingredients
- 1 onion sliced
- 1 green chile, chopped i used a jalapeno
- ¼ cup unsalted cashews
- 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 Tablespoon ginger garlic paste OR 1 Tablespoon grated ginger and garlic
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1 ½ inch chunks
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place the onion, chiles and cashew nuts in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove the onion, chiles and cashew nuts. Place the onions, HALF the chiles and cashew nuts in a blender or small food processor. Puree for 2 - 3 minutes until a smooth paste is formed, adding a bit of the cooking water if needed to make a smooth paste.
- Taste the puree. If it's spicy enough, discard the remaining chiles. If not, add more chile and puree until the paste is spiced to your liking.
- In a large saute pan, heat the pan over medium-high heat. Blot the chicken dry with paper towels. Add the oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add ginger and galic paste (or grated ginger and garlic) and cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken and cook until the chicken is no longer pink on the outside, about 3 - 4 minutes.
- Add the coriander, cumin, garam masala, turmeric and salt. Cook for another minute. Add the onion puree and stir to combine. Add two tablespoons of water to the blender or food processor, swirl and pour into the pan. Cook for another 10 - 15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
- Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings. Garnish with a drizzle of cream and a sprinkling of garam masala and mint leaves if desired. Serve.
Recipe Notes
- It's really hard to determine how spicy a chile is by looking at it! So when making the onion puree I always start with either ¼ or ½ of the chile. After pureeing taste the puree to gauge the heat. If you like it spicier, add more chile!
- Adding the ginger garlic paste to the oil (and not when you add the chicken!) makes a huge difference in flavor. You can buy ginger garlic paste at some supermarkets and you can also find it at Indian markets. It's a wonderful ingredient to have on hand!!
- Blotting the chicken dry helps you to get a good sear on the chicken so don't skip this step!
- As I mentioned, this dish freezes beautifully so make extra!
Valentina says
Oooh, I'm definitely going to try this one. I love the sound (and look) of the cashew-onion-garlic paste! And those spices. Delicious!
Nancy says
Hi Valentina - this curry is a definite game changer - it's very mild so it's perfect for those who fear curries! Enjoy!!!