This Chicken Korma is a delicious Indian dish made with mildly spiced chicken that’s been marinated in a homemade korma paste. It’s so easy to make, luscious and creamy, this chicken will surely become a show-stopper! My recipe is packed full of amazing flavor and will more than hit the spot.
Easy Chicken Korma Recipe
Some of the most satisfying and flavorful dishes I make in my kitchen are Indian recipes. Whether it’s a curry, some tandoori chicken, or some Mulligatawny, these recipes almost end up being a big hit. I was craving Indian food all day today and decided on this classic, Chicken Korma. Not only is this dish super packed with creamy flavor, but it’s a sure fire way to get some tender chicken.
What Is Chicken Korma?
Chicken Korma is a mildly spiced Indian dish with a thick sauce, often featuring nuts such as almonds or cashews. My recipe uses some garam masala spice to get that quintessential flavor, bright turmeric, and creamy almonds. I like to use Greek yogurt for this recipe as it adds some great tang and packs quite a bit of protein. I’m so excited to share this with you guys, I know you’ll love it!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Chicken – I’m using chicken thighs today because I’m looking for super moist and tender chicken with tons of flavor.
- Tomato passata – This is basically just uncooked tomato puree that has been strained of seeds and skins. Crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce will do as well.
- Garlic – Use as much or little as you like.
- Garam Masala – This is an Indian spice blend, definitely pick some up if you’re looking to make this recipe. I’ve included how to make your own in the tips section.
- Spices – Turmeric, paprika, and coriander are the rest of the spices to round off our dish.
- Almonds – This will give flavor, texture, and some great creaminess to our dish. You can also use cashews.
- Yogurt – I’m using Greek today because it’s my favorite to cook and bake with. It’s full of protein and acidity.
- Onion – Something that cooks down well, like white or yellow onion.
- Cream – I use heavy cream in my Korma but if you’re looking to reduce the fat, feel free. Coconut milk would be a nice addition here as well.
- Olive oil and Butter – We want both to saute everything off in, the olive oil will lower the smoke point of the butter to prevent the butter from burning.
- Seasoning – Along with all the spices we need I also add a bit of salt, we don’t need too much today.
How To Make Chicken Korma
- Create a flavor base: Add the passata, garlic, ginger, garam masala, turmeric, paprika, coriander, salt, almonds and yogurt to your food processor and mix on high. Toss your chicken in this paste till it’s well coated and pop covered in the fridge for 1 – 2 hours.
- Create your sauce: Add the olive oil and butter to a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes or until they start to brown. Add the chicken to the skillet along with any leftover mixture you may have. Cook this for 15 minutes and stir in the heavy cream once the chicken is cooked through.
- Finish the Chicken Korma: Cook for an additional 5 minutes and serve hot drizzled with some yogurt and over fluffy rice and naan or Roti/Chapati (Indian Flat Bread).
Tips For Making The Best Chicken Korma
- If you really want to set the flavor off in this dish, I recommend making your own Garam Masala spice blend, directions for doing so can be found here.
- Using quality spices will make a big difference on the flavor profile of your Chicken Korma.
- Add some red pepper flakes if you’d like to add some heat in your dish!
- Crushed cardamom and cinnamon are nice warm additions as well.
What Else Can I Use In My Chicken Korma?
This dish is like a blank canvas for cooking up some veg, you can have some fun with it so feel free to get creative.
Veggies
- Potatoes
- Bell pepper, any color.
- Carrots
- Zucchini
You can also add chickpeas if you’d like a protein substitute for the chicken!
Storing Leftover Chicken Korma
This dish will last up to 3 days in the fridge if stored in an airtight container. This curry freezes superbly as well! Just store it in a shallow container and be sure it’s completely cooled before popping it in. It should keep for up to 3 months if frozen, just reheat on the stove when you’re ready to enjoy it.
More Indian Dishes You’ll Love:
- Butter Chicken
- Tandoori Chicken
- Lamb Korma
- Chicken Tikka Masala
- Coconut Basil Chicken Curry
- Mulligatawny Soup
- Mango Lassi
- Roasted Potatoes with East Indian Spices
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Chicken Korma
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken thighs boneless and skinless, cut into small bite size pieces
- ½ cup tomato passata or crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon ginger fresh, crushed
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon paprika sweet
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ½ cup almonds or cashews
- ¾ cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon butter unsalted
- 1 medium onion chopped
- ½ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Add the tomato passata, garlic, ginger, garam masala, turmeric, paprika coriander, salt, almonds, yogurt to your food processor and process on high until smooth.
- Toss the chicken with the paste and mix well. Cover with a plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
- Add the olive oil and butter to a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes or until they start to brown a bit and are softened.
- Add the chicken to the skillet, including the yogurt mixture that's left in the bowl and cook for about 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Stir in the heavy cream and mix well. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- Garnish with yogurt and cilantro, if preferred. Serve over rice and naan bread.
I am going to make this tomorrow for Sunday dinner and I was wondering…. Could you make the sauce the night before and then just marinate the chicken pieces a couple hours before you want to cook? Thanks Jo
Sure you can. Hope you like the recipe!
i doubled the recipe, and I found the yogurt mixture with chicken needed more liquid to cook in ( I used chicken broth) prior to adding the cream… and i also had to cover the deep skillet I used to prevent yogurt mixture from sticking. i have a similar recipe before but maybe I browned the chicken prior to adding to yogurt mixture in skillet? i added fresh squeezed lime in addition to the cilantro
I have made this recipe many times. And it rocks every single time!
One question….I accidentally received Greek coconut yogurt in my shop this week…could I use this?
If you don’t mind the coconut flavor in it, sure.
Would soya cream work as a substitute to heavy cream? I’m allergic to coconut and intolerant to dairy. Would love to try!
I haven’t tried it myself, and I’m not familiar with soya cream, but I don’t see why not.
instead of whole almonds could you use almond flour? If so how much would you use?
Almond flour will give this sauce a very gritty texture if you don’t mind. That being said, I’d add a few tbsp up to 1/4 cup.
Amazing!
I recently had GI surgery and am only able to eat really tender meats-wondering if you think it would be ok to cook this in the instant pot to accomplish that? Thank you!
Yes definitely! It would be lovely in the IP. Only difference it that it’ll be a bit more liquidy. You can cook off the excess moisture or add a cornstarch slury.
How much coconut milk would you recommend vs heavy cream? 🙂
Use the same amount!
I make your Chicken Korma recipe all the time! It’s so easy and so delicious!
We just never think to try and make Indian food but this recipe changed all that. Thanks, Jo!
I’ve been craving for Indian recipes sine long! Surely trying out this chicken korma at the soonest! Thanks Joanna.
My pleasure!