Saffron chicken korma (zafran murgh korma) recipe
For a dish to be called a korma it usually has to be meat, although it can sometimes be vegetable-based, and braised in a yogurt base. Used sparingly in Indian kitchens due to it being an expensive spice, the addition of saffron gives this dish a lovely colour and also makes it very special. This recipe serves four as a main course or eight as part of a multi-course meal.
This recipe is from Asma’s Indian Kitchen: Home-cooked food brought to you by Darjeeling Express by Asma Khan, published by Pavilion Foods. Photography by Kim Lightbody.
Ingredients
- 500 g Turkish or Greek yogurt (10% fat)
- 1 tbsp garlic paste
- 2 tbsp fresh ginger paste
- 8 medium skinless chicken thighs (on the bone) (approximately 1kg/2lb 4 oz)
- 2 tbsp whole milk
- 1 pinch good-quality saffron strands
- 6 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 medium white onions, evenly and thinly sliced into rings
- 1 whole garam masala (2 Indian bay leaves, 1 piece cassia bark, 2.5 cm/1 inch long, 3 green cardamom pods and 1 clove)
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 0.2 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp ground almonds
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 handful almond flakes, to garnish
Details
- Cuisine: Indian
- Recipe Type: Korma
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 10 mins
- Cooking Time: 20 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- In a small bowl, combine the yogurt with the garlic and ginger pastes.
- Place the chicken thighs in a non-reactive container with a lid and spoon over the marinade, making sure that every surface of the chicken is covered. Cover the container and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Gently warm the milk in a pan. Do not boil the milk; it should only be tepid as you do not want to scald the saffron. Touch the surface of the milk to check the temperature, then when the milk is tepid add the saffron strands and leave to infuse.
- In a deep pan or wok that has a lid, heat the vegetable oil over a medium-high heat. Add the onions to the pan and fry gently, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and caramelised.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the onions from the pan, leaving as much of the oil in the pan as possible to cook the other ingredients, and place on a plate to drain.
- Spread the onion rings across the plate so they crisp as they cool.
- Add the whole garam masala to the same pan and oil used to fry the onions.
- After a few seconds, add the ground coriander and continue to cook, stirring.
- After 1 minute, add the marinated chicken to the pan along with the marinade from the container. Keeping the heat on medium–high, continue stirring gently.
- After 5 minutes, or when the oil separates from the yogurt and comes to the surface, add the chilli powder and salt. Lower the heat, cover the pan with the lid and simmer gently for 35 minutes. The chicken is ready when the edges have softened and are slightly curled.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Add the saffron-infused milk, ground almonds and sugar. Stir the softened chicken gently to avoid breaking it up.
- Before serving, taste to check the seasoning and adjust as necessary.
- Garnish with the flaked almonds and the fried onions.
This recipe is from Asma’s Indian Kitchen: Home-cooked food brought to you by Darjeeling Express by Asma Khan, published by Pavilion Foods. Photography by Kim Lightbody.
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