Chicken Korma Recipe: An Ultimate Light And Easy-to-Prep Indian Curry (2024)

If you find yourself fancying an Indian meal with lots of aromatic spices, try this Chicken Korma recipe. It’s not only tasty, but is also easy to prep with no stress.

What Is Korma?

Korma is a dish that has its roots in North India. The term “korma” translates to “braising“, which is the traditional method used to make this recipe.

It’s very much an incredibly easy and delicious dish, especially when served with freshly chopped chilies and steamed rice.

To make a korma dish, you submerge the meat/vegetables in a thick Korma sauce. Then, sear the meat/vegetables in a pan, add the marinade, and simmer.

The Korma sauce is also fascinating, with fresh aromatic spices blended along with almonds and tomato paste. Then, Greek yogurt is added, to make the sauce creamy, tangy, and help tenderize the meat.

Additionally, other kinds of nuts are great to add if you’re aiming for a bit more nuttiness. We added cashews, and it was amazing.

Is Chicken Korma Curry?

Korma is among the most popular types of curries you will probably find at Indian restaurants. Others include Dhansak, Tikka Masala, Saag, Jalfrezi, and Vindaloo.

When it comes to curry, people expect it to give off a strong aroma, and it does. The spice mix in the Korma sauce includes powerful, intense spices, like garam masala, cardamom, and curry powder.

But don’t let that discourage you. The spices are in moderate amounts, which can be really compelling.

Is It Spicy?

Curries are known to be intensely hot, but this is gross generalization. There are both spicy and mild kinds, and korma falls into the latter category.

If you prefer your chicken korma spicy, you can always add chili later, dried or fresh.

Chicken Korma vs Butter Chicken

Having similar ingredients and visuals, the two are often mistaken as variations of one dish. These curries may come from the same cuisine but they don’t share the same spirit.

For starters, korma often calls for mutton, and butter chicken’s core has always been chicken. Both use tomato in the sauce, but the tanginess in korma is expected to be much lighter than butter chicken.

While we cook chicken korma using a pan, butter chicken is ideally cooked in a clay pot, or “tandoor”. Chicken korma is slightly seared before being simmered with the sauce, which gives it more character.

And to top it off, korma sauce is richer, thanks to the blended nuts and added yogurt. These are also used in butter chicken but in a smaller amount.

Is This Dish Healthy?

Yes, it is. Its calories, saturated fat, and sodium are all kept within the limits, complying with our healthy eating guidelines approved by nutritionists.

Apart from that, the ingredients in this chicken korma recipe are all considered healthy.

Take almonds for instance. This nutritious nut is high in healthy fats, loaded with antioxidants, and can help control blood pressure.

Greek yogurt is one of the most recommended types of dairy. Besides being packed with protein and calcium like other types of dairy, it also contains probiotics that promote gut health.

And last but not least, for the main source of protein, we’re using skinless, boneless chicken thighs. They are about 20% protein in mass and give lots of flavors.

You can use chicken breast for more protein, but we can’t assure you that it’s still as tasty.

Tips for Making

If 5 minutes have passed and the thighs aren’t getting any charred marks, cook them for another 1-2 minutes. We found that using a cast-iron skillet helps.

To cook short-grained rice, place one part water, one part rice into a rice cooker, and hit the button. Or, double the water and simmer the rice over medium heat in a pot for 20 minutes.

If you’re cooking basmati rice, boil a pot of 4-5 parts of water. Add canola oil, place the rice in, and cook for around 6-7 minutes.

Then, take some of the rice out using a fork. Press the rice against your fingers to look for that 90% cooked texture, which is tender but not too mushy.

Drain the rice and run it under cold water and you have a delicious batch of basmati rice.

Calories

Each serving of our chicken korma recipe is 511 calories. More than 60% of the calories come from lean proteins and healthy fats from yogurt, olive oil, almonds, and cashews.

To meet the 750-calorie meal, chicken korma needs to be paired with a side with around 250 calories. Here’s what we have to recommend:

What to Serve with

After having such an aromatic dish with all of the herbs and spices, we thought of something soothing— pumpkin soup. They are both creamy, but the soup really mellows out the fierce fragrance of chicken korma.

How Long Does It Last in the Fridge?

Chicken korma can last for up to 2 days in the refrigerator, in an airtight container or covered with cling film.

To keep cooked chicken korma for longer, you can divide it into Ziploc bags and toss them in the freezer. These will last for about 1 month.

If you fancy this dish, you may also love our top 20chicken thigh recipes or best 50 chicken roundup. To include more chicken dishes in your daily meal plans, this roundup may give you several ideas.

Similarly Tasty Rice & Chicken Recipes

Chicken korma is just one of the many great dishes Indian cuisine can offer. We have a whole collection dedicated to the cuisine in case you’re interested.

To serve with cooked rice, we have some delicious selections from other cuisines:

• Moo Goo Gai Pan: a Cantonese chicken stir-fry that cooks together chicken thighs, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, sliced carrots, and snap peas in a garlicky soy sauce. It’s one of the great remedies for cold winter nights.
• Thai Chicken Curry: a very saucy, spicy treat that coats chunks of chicken and carrots in an aromatic broth full of spices. We love how the taste of curry is perfectly complemented by both warm spices and fresh aromatics.