Chicken Kurma

Kurma or Korma is told to have its origin from Mughalai cuisine. It consists of a creamy sauce which is made using either milk cream, coconut milk, a paste of ground nuts or a varying combination of these. This curry is highly flavored with a mixture of spices that you cannot just keep away from it because of its aroma. Kurma is usually not very spicy, especially due to the ingredients that gets added to make it creamy. There are a lot of versions of Korma available all over and the one I have here is a Malabar Muslim version which I came across in the book "The Suriani Kitchen" by Lathika George.

Serves around 10-12 people

Oil	- 2 tbsp
Onion	- 2 (1 lbs - Chopped)
Ginger Paste	- 1 tbsp
Garlic Paste	- 2 tbsp
Tomato	- 2 (0.4lbs - Chopped)
Turmeric Powder	- 1 tsp
Chicken	- 3 lbs
Curry Leaves	- 1 twig
Salt	- to taste
Water	- 3 cups

For Coconut paste

Cashew	- 1/2 cup (chopped)
Grated Coconut	- 1 cup
Green Chilly	- 5
Poppy Seed	- 1 tbsp
Water	- 3/4 cup

For Spice Powder

Cardamom	- 4
Cloves	- 5
Cinnamon	- 1 - 2" stick
Fennel	- 1 tsp

1. Dry roast the spices in a pan and grind to make the spice powder.

2. Make the coconut paste by grinding all the mentioned ingredients into a fine paste.

3. Heat the oil (I used coconut oil to give it that traditional Kerala taste and flavor) and saute the onions until transparent.

4. Add the ginger and garlic paste and saute until the raw smell is gone.

5. Add the tomato and turmeric powder and saute for 2-3 minutes.

6. Add the ground coconut paste and saute for 3-4 minutes.

7. Add the spice powder and mix well.

8. Add the chicken and salt and mix well to make sure that the chicken pieces are coated with the gravy.

9. Add water and let it cook in a slow fire until the chicken is done.

10. Garnish with curry leaves and serve.

This is a perfect accompaniment with Kerala Parotta, Appam and Chappathi.