Pakistani Chicken Korma (Authentic)
An authentic, rich and luxurious korma is perfect to serve on a special occasion or get-together. This recipe is the real deal, with lots of warming spices and deep flavour. Pairs perfectly with some naan, sheermaal or taftaan.
Servings: 4 servings
Print
Ingredients
- ½ cup (125 ml) oil/ghee
- 2 (200 g) small onions sliced finely (about 2 small or 1 large onion)
- 2-2.2 lb (800-1000 g) chicken, bone in bone in, cut into curry pieces
- 3 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- ½ cup (130 g) full fat yogurt
- ½ cup (65 g) unsalted cashews ground into a fine paste with water (see notes for substitutions)
- 4 black cardamoms
- 16 green cardamoms
- 15 cloves
- 2 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 medium sized cinnamon stick
- 3 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1-2 teaspoon salt to taste
- Kewra water 1tsp or more as per preference
- 1 oz (20 g) almonds (1oz/30g almonds = 20 almonds)
Instructions
- Heat the oil/ghee in a deep pot or pan. Add the sliced onions and fry them over a medium to high heat, stirring often and keeping a very close eye on them to ensure they brown evenly. You may find you need to turn the heat down after a while if they look like they may be browning too quickly/unevenly.
- Once the onions have turned a dark brown (not black!), use a slotted spoon to remove them and rest them spread out on a paper towel. Set aside - these will crisp up as we work on the korma. This entire process will take about 20-25 minutes.
- Add the chicken, spices, ginger and garlic to the oil in the same vessel. Fry this over a medium to high heat, until the chicken no longer remains pink.
- Add in the yogurt and cashews paste. Fry everything well, stirring the entire time, until the oil begins to separate from the sauce of the curry and looks glossy.
- Add in 400ml/1 ¾ cups of water, bring everything to a boil and then cover with a lid and cook on a low heat for about 30 minutes..
- As the korma cooks, once the onions have cooled down completely and become crisp, you can crush them using your hands or a pestle and mortar until they are broken down into a textured mixture. Don't crush them into a fine powder or paste.
- Take the lid off and stir in the onions. Return the lid and cook for a further 10 minutes.
- Add in the kewra water. Give everything a taste and adjust the chilli and salt if needed
- Garnish with almonds just before serving.
Notes
- If you don't want to use cashews, you can substitute them completely for either ¼ cup/65g of double cream, coconut milk or an additional ½ cup150g yogurt. Alternatively, you can use almonds instead of cashews, too.
📩 Want me to email this recipe to you?
Enter your email & I'll send it right over.
Plus, you'll get bonus Pakistani food-goodness from Fatima Cooks, like new recipe alerts, exclusive email-only recipes + more!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from me. Your details are secure. Opt-out any time.
Did you make this recipe?I'd love to hear about it! Please leave a rating and comment on the blog, or share a photo on Instagram!