You know how prophecies come true. How when I said cook books weigh down on me while food memoirs don't I was actually treading into this little trap set out be me alone. Well so this Madhur Jaffrey book had family recipes towards the end which I initially didn't notice and then chose to ignore. The pace at which I was reading, I had already renewed the book thrice, paid an accumulating fine of $9 and was all ready to return it after the last chapter. But that was not to happen.
I turned the page, read the recipes, well some of them and thought let me try at least a couple before I return this. So I renewed the book again and there went 4 more weeks without me cooking a single thing from that book. Somehow the book & me were never on the same floor together, if I was in the Kitchen, the book was upstairs or in the basement or some place else but never at a hand's reach. Mostly it sat on the bedside table, the recipes beckoning to get cooked, while I paid some more fine.
Finally couple of weekends back there were some friends visiting and I wanted a chicken recipe simple and different. This is when I found Murgh Korma, a chicken dish made of yogurt and almonds tucked away among the few recipes in the book. The chicken korma sounded delicious, olde-worlde delicious, different from the Chicken Korma recipes out there, even different from Madhur Jaffrey's own Chicken Korma on the BBC site. I made it because of the simplicity of the recipe and because of the almonds. The dish turned out to be a reward, a deliciousness worth of 6 months of renting a book, not to mention the fines.
Here I have reproduced exactly the author's version of the Chicken Korma with Almonds in a Yogurt Sauce as in her memoir "Climbing the Mango Trees". She must have changed the recipe later to cater to a more western audience and a faster lifestyle. Try the original, it still is fast enough and the taste is worth it. I have added my own subtle changes in a separate section.
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Chicken Korma
What You Need
Ginger ~ 2&1/2" peeled and chopped
Garlic ~ 4-5 cloves
Almonds ~ 3 tbsp of blanched & slivered almonds
Yogurt ~ 1&1/2 cup
Garam Masala Powder ~ 1&1/2 tsp (Use your own or make one according to the author as posted here)
Corriander powder ~ 1 tbsp
Cayenne pepper ~ 1-1/2 tsp to taste
Onions ~ 2 medium
Cinnamon ~ 2" stick
Cardamom ~ 8 whole pods
Bay Leaves ~ 2
Chicken ~ 3&1/4 lb
Golden raisins ~ 2 tbsp
Cilantro ~ 3 tbsp finely chopped
How Madhur Jaffrey Did It
Put ginger, garlic and 1/4 cup of water in a blender. Blend until you have a smooth paste. add the almonds, 2 tbsp of water and blend till you get a smooth paste
Put Yogurt in a bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add the garam masala, corriander pwd, cayenne & salt. Stir well to mix
Heat Oil in a large saute pan
Put in the sliced onions and fry for 10-12 mins till reddish brown. Remove the onions with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel
Now to the oil add the cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaves
A minute later add the chicken pieces, only as many as possible in a single layer. Brown the chicken pieces lightly on both sides, removing to a bowl when done. Do this for all chocken pieces.
Add the golden raisins. Add the paste from the blender. Stir and fry for 2 minutes
Now put in the chicken, the yogurt and the fried onions. Stir to mix and bring to simmer on medium heat. Cover and cook for 25-30 mins at low heat until chicken is tender. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve
How I Did It
Put ginger, garlic and 1/4 cup of water in a blender. Blend until you have a smooth paste. add the almonds, 2 tbsp of water and blend till you get a smooth paste. I went a little low on the ginger, I had almost 5lb of chicken and still the same amount of ginger. Garlic & Almonds I doubled because I had more chicken.
Put Yogurt in a bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add the garam masala, corriander pwd, cayenne & salt. Stir well to mix. I added both Kashmiri Mirch and Red Chili Powder.
I marinated the chicken with little ginger paste, garlic paste, lime juice, salt and a pinch of turmeric powder for an hour or two
Heat Oil in a large saute pan
Put in the a quarter of the sliced onions and fry for 10-12 mins till soft and pinkish brown. Remove the onions with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel
Now add the chicken pieces, only as many as possible in a single layer. Brown the chicken pieces lightly on both sides, removing to a bowl when done. Do this for all chicken pieces.
Now to the oil add the cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaves
Add the rest of the chopped onions and fry till the onions are a pinkish brown
Add the golden raisins. Add the paste from the blender. Stir and fry for 2 minutes or till oil separates from the masala.
Lower the heat and add the yogurt. Stir to mix and bring to simmer on low heat. Adjust for seasonings. I add a little sugar at this point. Now put in the chicken. Stir to mix and bring to simmer on medium heat. Add water if you need more gravy. Cover and cook for 25-30 mins at low heat until chicken is tender.
Adjust for salt and seasonings. Garnish with the fried onions. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve
To Make Punjabi Garam Masala used in Madhur Jaffrey's recipe:
Put in a spice grinder
1 tbsp of cardamom seeds
1 tsp of whole black peppercorns
1 tsp of whole black cumin seeds
1 tsp of cloves
1/3 of a nutmeg
2" stick of cinnamon
Grind finely and store in an air tight jar. This makes about 3 tbsp of Garam Masala
Trivia: Korma has its roots in the Mughlai cuisine of modern-day India. It is a characteristic Persian-Indian dish which can be traced back to the 16th century and to the Mughal incursions into present-day Northern India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Classically, a korma is defined as a dish where meat or vegetables are braised with water, stock, yoghurt or cream.
