Safed Murg Korma (White Chicken Korma)

When you have a chicken loving family, you need to come up with quick chicken dishes that are different each week and are easy and quick to prepare with less ingredients that are easily avialable in your fridge, freezer and pantry - you experiment. This is one such dish. 

I know there are many blogs, youtube videos with many many dishes - each one overlaps another or is very similar. Thats cooking for you. I just adeed stuff in my pantry to make a white gravy as the kid wanted a white chicken dish this week. This gravy is not too spicy but is full of flavor and looks and tastes rich.

Ingredients

2 pounds chicken - I used boneless skinless thighs

2 medium onions

8 garlic cloves

1/2 inch ginger

1 green chili

1/4 cup cashews

8 to 10 almonds

1 teaspoon popy seeds (optional)

2 tablespoons sour cream (hung yogurt can be used too)

4 tablespoons oil

1 inch cinnamon stick

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoons garam masala powder

salt to taste

2 teaspoons kewra water (optional)

Chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)

Method

Blend the onions, garlic and ginger into a fine paste - do not add water. Soak the cashews and the almonds in hot water for abut 20 mins. Peel the almonds, if they have skin. 

In a karahi add the oil. Once it heats up, add the cinnamon stick and the bay leaves. When they emit a nice aroma (in about 20 seconds) add the onion paste and mix well. Fry till you see the oil on the sides. Be careful not to burn or brown the onions. Add salt to taste and the garam masala and mix well. To this add the sour cream and keep stirring till it all blends well. Add 1/4 cup of water. To this add cut chicken pieces. I cut them into 1 inch pieces. Cover and cook on medium flame. Make a paste of the cashews, almonds, poppy seeds and chilli by adding little water. Add this mixture to the cooking chicken. Clean the mixer cup with 1/4 cup water and add this to the karahi. Mix everything well. Cover and let it cook on low medium flame for 15 mins. open and check if chicken is cooked and for salt. Add kewra water and mix well. 

Remove onto a serving platter and garnish with chopped cilantro. 

Serve with steamed rice, paratha, naan or roti.

Dhaba Style Chicken Curry (In the Instantpot)

Ingredients

2 pounds chicken (I used boneless skinless chicken thighs)
2 TBS Yogurt
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
3 medium onions
4 green chilis (you can add more or less as per spice level desired)
10 to 12 garlic cloves
1/2 inch ginger piece
3 TBS coconut oil (you can use ghee or any other oil too)
salt to taste

For Masala Powder

1 inch cinnamon (dalchini)
2 cloves (lavang)
2 green cardamoms (elaichi)
1 tsp black peppercorns (kali mirch)
1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi dana)
2 tsps coriander seeds (dhania beej)
1/2 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)


Method


Ingredients

2 pounds chicken (I used boneless skinless chicken thighs)
2 TBS Yogurt
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
3 medium onions
4 green chilis (you can add more or less as per spice level desired)
10 to 12 garlic cloves
1/2 inch ginger piece
3 TBS coconut oil (you can use ghee or any other oil too)
salt to taste

For Masala Powder

1 inch cinnamon (dalchini)
2 cloves (lavang)
2 green cardamoms (elaichi)
1 tsp black peppercorns (kali mirch)
1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi dana)
2 tsps coriander seeds (dhania beej)
1/2 tsp carom seeds (ajwain)


Method

Cut the chicken into 2 inch pieces. Marinate in yogurt, 1/2 tsp salt, turmeric and chilli powder for about 1 hour. You can do this overnight too.
Make a powder of the ingredients mentioned in the 'for masala powder' tab and keep aside. I use a coffee grinder for this. I have had this coffee grinder doing my spice grinding for a few years now.
Make a paste of the onions, garlic, ginger and green chilis and keep aside.
In the same grinder make a puree of the tomatoes and keep aside.
In the Instantpot on saute mode, add the oil. When it gets hot, add the onion paste along with half the dry ground masala. Saute till it becomes a nice golden brown color, and keep stirring a few times in the middle. When the onions turn a golden brown, add the tomato puree and mix well. Saute till the oil leaves the gravy on the sides. Add the remaining half of the ground masala and the chicken pieces and mix well. Add 1 cup water. Cover the lid with vent sealed. Manual for 12 minutes and then a quick release. Open the lid, add more if you need a thin gravy. Add salt to taste. Garnish with chopped cilantro/coriander and serve with hot phulkas or steamed rice. We liked this with some sandwich bread too.

Note - This can be cooked on a stovetop too using a saucepan. Everything remains the same - just add the chicken pieces and cover and let it cook for about 20 minutes on medium flame. Check if chicken is cooked, if not then cook for another 5 minutes. Adjust salt and water and serve.

Laziz Chole - (Chickpea Curry)

Ingredients

For Chole
1 cup dried chickpeas
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon eno (baking soda works too)
2 tablespoons ghee (oil can be used too)
1 onion - chopped
2 tomatoes - chopped
10 cloves garlic - chopped
1 inch ginger - chopped
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon nigella seeds (kalonji)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
salt to taste
1 teaspoon chaat masala
Chopped cilantro for garnish
slit green chilis for garnish (Optional)

For Masala Powder (Coarse Powder)
5 kashmiri chilis (add more or less as per spice level wanted)
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 bay leaves
2 cloves
2 cardamoms
1/8 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1/2 inch cinnamon

Method

Soak the dried chickpeas in 5 cups water for 8 to 10 hours. Drain the water and let it sit aside.
Dry roast the ingredients listed in the masala powder section and grind them to a coarse powder.
I used my instantpot to cook these chole. So, on saute mode, add the ghee. Once it gets hot, add the cumin and the nigella seeds. Now add the chopped onions and fry till they turn a golden color. Add the tomatoes and the ginger and garlic. Mix well, till the raw smell goes away, about 5 minutes. To this add turmeric powder and the coarse masala and mix well. Add the soaked chickpeas and 2 cups water. Add salt to taste and the eno salt. Mix well. Close the lid and go to manual setting, high pressure with vent sealed and time it to 20 minutes with a natural release of the pressure. Open the lid. Add more water if you want a little thin gravy. Add chaat masala and give it a good stir.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and slit green chilis and serve with kulcha, naan, chappati, bread or steamed rice.

Note - This can be cooked in a pressure cooker too. Everything is the same. Cook it for 3 whistles and you have chole ready.

Amritsari Fish Fry

This crispy battered fried fish is a North Indian delicacy. Its fish and its fried and its crispy - whats not to love???

It is made with simple ingredients - but, the combination of all the things makes it a treat. Ofcorse the fiery red color adds to the 'eating with the eyes' bit. Its the addition of carom seeds (ajwain) which gives the fish  unique taste.

you can use any firm fish to make these - I have used tilapia here. But, cod and salmon can be used to. Boneless fillets of king fish (surmai) can also be used.

Ingredients

6 boneless skinless fillets of tilapia (this roughly about a pound and half)
1 tablespoon coriander seeds (dhania)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
1 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
1 teaspoon black or white peppercorns
2 teaspoons chilli powder - you can add more if you want heat
1 teaspoon kasuri methi
1 teaspoon ginger paste
1 teaspoon garlic paste
3 drops of red food coloring - optional
3 tablespoons yogurt
4 tablespoons chickpea flour (besan)
2 tablespoons rice flour
salt to taste
oil for frying
chopped cilantro for garnish
2 teaspoons chaat masala

Method

Cut the fish fillets into 1 inch pieces. I used a mortar and pestle to grind the spices as I wanted a small bite in the fish - but, you can use a spice grinder for that purpose. Make a coarse powder of the coriander seeds, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, carom seeds and the pepper. In a mixing bowl add the coarse powders along with ginger and garlic paste. To this add the chilli powder, salt, chickpea flour and rice flour. Mix them well. Add the yogurt and the red food color (if using) and make a thick well mixed paste. To this add the fish pieces and coat each piece with the paste. Let it sit and marinade for atleast an hour.
In a karahi or wok or fryer add oil and let it heat up. You know the oil id hot when you add a drop of the paste and it comes up sizzling. Turn the temperature to a medium. Add not more then 5 fish pieces at a time. Fry for about 7 to 8 minutes (Tilapia fillets are thin - but, if you are using salmon or a thick fillet like cod - the cooking time may vary and will be in the range of 10 to 12 minutes). Remove on a plate with a paper towel to absorb the excess oil. When it looks a bit dry - remove onto serving plate and sprinkle with some chaat masala. Repeat the process till all the pieces are fried. Sprinkle some chopped cilantro/coriander and serve.