Quick and easy Chicken Korma made in the Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker. Chicken marinated in yogurt and spices, then cooked with lots of onions and finished with cashew paste for a creamy rich texture. Creamy, full of flavor and spices, this Chicken Korma is a must try!
This is a restaurant style chicken curry. What better than enjoying it in the comfort of your home on a week night! Yes, it takes just 30 minutes to make this Chicken Korma in the Instant Pot (with a little marination prep).
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What is Korma?
Korma is a dish that has its roots in the Mughlai cuisine of the Indian subcontinent. It is a mildly spiced Indian curry dish of meat, fish or vegetables marinated in yogurt or cream and spices, then finished with almonds, cashews or other nuts to make a thick creamy sauce.
I wanted to share a recipe featuring chicken drumsticks, and this Chicken Korma was perfect with drumsticks. It can also be made with boneless chicken by adjusting the cooking time.
If you are looking for a meat-free version, here is my Vegan Vegetable Korma recipe.
Another amazing mild chicken curry is this Coconut Chicken Curry if you are wanting to try a completely different flavor curry.
How is Chicken Korma different than other Chicken Curries?
I have shared my Mom's Chicken Curry before, which is a must try if you have not done it yet. However I wanted to share the main differences between this korma and the chicken curry:
- Chicken is marinated in yogurt for the korma.
- In this korma, chicken is cooked only with onions. No tomatoes are added, however chicken marinated in yogurt gives a delicious tangy taste.
- Korma is creamy, so we add nut paste. I use cashews, however you can also use almonds or even finish with coconut milk to make it nut free.
Easy Step-by-Step Recipe
Let's start with marinating the chicken. You will find lots of recipes where this step is skipped, however I feel that it really adds to the taste and makes the chicken so tender and flavorful. We don't have to keep it for long, just about 30 minutes is perfect. If you want to prep, you can keep the marinated chicken refrigerated for up to 8 hours.
Soak cashews in warm water, before you start cooking the curry.
In the instant pot, start with tempering the whole spices in ghee or oil. Then sauté onions along with ginger and garlic. After sautéing for a few minutes, add in the marinated chicken.
We want to saute the chicken with the onions for a few minutes. This helps to seal in the flavors and cook the yogurt before pressure cooking. Then pressure cook the chicken curry. We will quick release, so that the chicken does not get over cooked.
While the chicken is cooking, blend the cashews to a paste. Stir in the paste to the cooked chicken. This will make a curry creamy.
I used chicken drumsticks in this recipe, but any chicken with bones can be used. If using boneless chicken thigh or breasts, adjust cooking time.
This curry is to be cooked for 6 minutes at high pressure. This is perfect cooking time if you want to cook rice pot-in-pot along with the chicken. See this Dal Fry recipe where I cook basmati rice with the lentils.
Enjoy this Chicken Korma with naan or basmati rice.
More chicken recipes you might enjoy:
- Chicken Tikka Masala
- Chicken Biryani
- Chicken Vindaloo
- Chicken Tikka Kebab
- Tandoori Chicken Wings
- Chicken Chettinad
Instant Pot Chicken Korma
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs Chicken Legs
- 3 tablespoon Ghee or Oil
- 2 cups Onions
- 1 tablespoon Ginger minced
- 1 tablespoon Garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder)
- ½ teaspoon Garam Masala
- ¼ cup Water for cooking chicken
- ½ cup Cashews
- ¼ cup Water warm, to soak and blend cashews
- ¼ cup Cilantro to garnish
Whole Spices
- 5 pods Green Cardamom (Elaichi)
- 2 Bay leaf (Tej Patta)
- 1" Cinnamon (Dalchini)
- 6 Cloves (Laung)
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds (Jeera)
For marination
- 3 tablespoon Yogurt
- ½ teaspoon Ground Turmeric (Haldi powder)
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri Red Chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Marinate chicken with yogurt, turmeric, red chili and salt. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Soak cashews in warm water while the chicken is marinating. Blend cashews with water to a smooth paste.
- Start the instant pot in sauté mode. Add oil and whole spices. Saute for 30 seconds.
- Add onion, ginger, garlic and sauté for 3 minutes.
- Stir in the spices. Add marinated chicken and sauté for 3-4 mins. We want the yogurt to cook before pressure cooking the chicken.
- Add water for cooking. Stir well and deglaze the pot. Press Cancel and close lid with vent in sealing position.
- Start on Manual/Pressure Cook mode at high pressure for 6 minutes. When the pressure cooker beeps, press cancel and quick release the pressure manually.
- Add cashew paste to the chicken and mix well.
- Garnish with cilantro. Enjoy over rice or with naan.
Video
Notes
- For boneless chicken thigh or breast pieces, pressure cook for only 4 minutes.
- If you don't like whole spices in the curry, you can use a spice pouch.
- Top with roasted sliced almonds and raisins, to make it like Shahi Chicken Korma.
- This recipe was created in a 6qt Instant Pot DUO60 Multi-use Programmable Pressure Cooker.
Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
Nherbst says
We moved away from my favorite Indian restaurant and have not been able to find anything near us. I decided to try Chicken Korma myself and THANK YOU! This was just what my craving called for! Easy to follow recipe and turned out amazing!
Meeta Arora says
Hello - So glad to hear you enjoyed the chicken korma. Thank you for sharing back your review 🙏
Olivia says
Can you give some measurements if I wanted to use ground spices in place of the whole spices? These are easier for me to find at my grocery store. Also, what would be a good substitute for the red chilli powder? Cayenne? Thank you.
Meeta Arora says
Hi Olivia - The whole spices add a wonderful aroma to the curry. If you don't have any of the whole spices, skip them and add an extra half teaspoon of garam masala at the end (check the spice level of the curry before adding). You can use paprika to keep the curry mild or cayenne to make it spicier. Hope you enjoy the korma!
Savia says
This was absolutely delicious. I used chicken thighs, which were a little big so increased cooking time to 10 minutes. Family enjoyed the meal tonight 😊
Piping Pot Curry says
Hi Savia - So good to hear that 🙂
Tina says
Delicious and easy! Love your recipes!
Piping Pot Curry says
Hi Tina - So good to hear that. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Orma says
I want to make this tonight but only have chicken wings available. Would you suggest changing the cook time at all? Thanks!
Meeta Arora says
Hi Orma - I believe the same cooking time would work well for chicken wings too. Hope you enjoy the curry!
Eva says
I pinned this recipe many months ago and finally had the chance to get all the ingredients to make it today. We love Indian food and this is one of the best dishes we have made...yet! I also tried your pot in pot basmati rice recipe with this dish. Both turned out A-MAZING! Thank you so much for sharing the recipes. I can't wait to try more dishes from your blog.
Eva de Leon says
I pinned this recipe many months ago and finally had the chance to get all the ingredients to make it today. We love Indian food and this is one of the best dishes we have made...yet! I also tried your pot in pot basmati rice recipe with this dish. Both turned out A-MAZING! Thank you so much for sharing the recipes. I can't wait to try more dishes from your blog.
Mauli says
Hi Meeta! I made this dish last night and family loved it. It’s super easy to follow and turned out great. This is also good for the kids who doesn’t like spicy food and my picky eater finished her plate. Definitely will try to make it again. Thanks so much!
MISTY BRUCH says
Can you use pork loin? What would the cook time be?
Meeta Arora says
Hi Misty - I have not tried this with pork, so I cannot say what the cooking time will be. Please do share if you try!
Meena says
Hi - thank you so much for your easy recipes! I need to make this dish with 2 lbs of chicken for a party and was thinking to use a whole chicken since it is cheaper. how can I adjust the cooking time? Or is it easier to use leg quarters?
Also - how long do the cashews need to soak and how much water should they soak in? Is there an easier substitute?
Thanks!
Meeta Arora says
Hi Meena - You can use whole chicken pieces as well in this korma. I soak the cashews for about half hour while the chicken is marinating. I use 1/4 cup water to soak and blend the cashews. Hope you enjoy the chicken korma!