The mild, creamy saucy humble Chicken Korma lacks fiery spices, making it a crowd-pleasing, 'entry-level' dish. ‘Korma’ represents the gravy made with yoghurt, nuts and herbs. It symbolizes a rich history, dating back to 16th century North Indian and Pakistani cuisine where it featured on the menu in the Royal Mughal Court kitchen.
Chicken Korma recipe is a non-vegetarian option consisting of chicken pieces, sometimes, mixed with vegetables, simmered in aromatic thick sauce or glaze. [The English name is an anglicisation of Urdu, more accurately transliterated as qorma, derived from a Turkic root.
Chicken Korma Recipe can be mildly spiced or fiery, may use pieces of lamb, goat meat or a combination of vegetables such as spinach and turnip.
Curry (or soup) is made with diverse combinations of regional herbs and spices, and the technique of preparation varies regionally. In general, Chicken Korma curry contains a variety of mild spices like cardamom, cayenne and garam masala, which must be cooked first to release the gorgeous aroma and flavours.
The colour of the meal depends on the type of herbs used in the curry powder. The meal consists of no artificial colours, flavours and preservatives.
Chicken Korma is served as a part of the non-vegetarian tiffin. It’s one serving with rice or roti offers a full meal that is high on the satiety index.
Chicken Korma is rich in minerals and vitamins.
It is a gluten free recipe.
The cooking techniques based on “dum” and the culinary terms such as Korma, Bhunao, Bharta, Baghar, Bukhara, Dhungaar, Tawa and Talna are often lost in translation. Kormas were prepared in the Mughal court kitchens, like the famous white korma, garnished with silver vark, was said to have been served to Shah Jahan and his guests at the inauguration of the Taj Mahal.
Traditionally, korma would be prepared in a pot set over a very low fire, with charcoal on the lid to provide all-round heat. The word korma is derived from Urdu qorma, korma or kormah, meaning “braise”, and referring to the cooking technique used in the dish.
All the words and the names of dishes such as ghormeh (Persian language), the Azerbaijani qovurma or kavarma are ultimately derived from a Turkish language word qawirma meaning “fried thing”. The Indian korma is possibly unrelated in the culinary sense to the modern Turkish kavurma or other dishes using the same root word.
Classically, a korma is defined as a dish where meat or vegetables are braised with yoghurt, cream or stock added. The technique covers many different styles of korma. Most restaurants in India and Pakistan serve Chicken Korma cooked in a host of spices such as cardamom, cloves, garlic, coriander, chilli powder, ginger paste along with a mixture of fried onions and yoghurt, flavoured with saffron.
Home-cooked flavour of a chicken korma curry is based on a mixture of spices, including ground coriander and cumin. The dish can be combined with yoghurt kept below curdling temperature and incorporated slowly and carefully with the chicken juices.
Chicken korma curry is a perfect dinner dish. It is often served with roti, rice, salads and mint flavoured curd.