Chicken Korma

Its Ramadan time again. Ifthars with pakoras, samosas, fruit chaat, doodh pati chai. All this followed by pulaw, salans, bhujiyas....those from Pakistan will definitely be able to relate. Its one of the great parts of being home; the bountiful fried foods to break your fast and the huge feast that follows. The best part is that you don't have to make any of it. It just magically appears on the table waiting to be devoured.

On the other side of the world in New York, with its 90 degree humid days and 16-hour food-less rozas, the prospect of Ramadan doesn't seem half as exciting. In an effort to make it feel a little more like home I've revisited the tattered book of delicious recipes my mother had given me. To say she is a spectacular cook is an understatement.One of my favorite recipes from this little notebook is chicken korma. It is hearty, flavorful, swimming in curry, and extremely satisfying when you haven't eaten all day. It takes a while to make but its worth every minute. We ate it hungrily the first night and we had enough leftovers for dinner the following night as well. It sometimes tastes even better the second day because the flavors have had more time to set.

To make the korma you have to marinate the chicken with garlic and ginger. Separately grind a few ingredients like almonds, fried onions, and coconut and add it to the yogurt to form the basis for the sauce. The chicken is cooked with the yogurt to form a rich hearty curry. The actual recipe is below in more detail.

Batool's Chicken Korma Recipe

1 Chicken cleaned and cut up into whole pieces like leg, breast(with the bone)

2 tsp garlic paste

2 tsp ginger paste

600g plain yogurt

handful of cocunut

32 pealed almonds

2 handfuls of ready fried onions

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp red chilli powder

1/4 tsp tumeric powder

Directions

Coat the chicken with garlic and ginger and leave it in a dish to marinate

Heat the coconut in a pan until it is slightly brown and crusted. Then heat he almonds in a pan to crust it as well. Separately grind the fried onions, coconut, and almonds in a food processer until very fine. Mix them into the yogurt one at a time.

Add oil to a pan and once it is hot add the tumeric, chilli powder, and salt and stir. Immediately add the chicken and let it brown for 5-7 mins on high heat. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the chicken and put it on low heat until most of the water evaporates.

When there is about an inch or two of curry mixture, add the yogurt. Add another cup of water and mix for about ten minutes. Let it cook for a while until it starts to become brown. Add another 1/2 to one cup water as it becomes thicker and starts to brown. Let it cook until the curry is the consistency you desire and has a rich brown color (for me it was another 30-40 mins).

Sprinkle some freshly cut cilantro at the end to garnish the dish.