Korma or qorma (; ; ) is a dish originating in

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

,cle2773345.ece Amjum Anand (2007), ''My Chicken Korma'' (Times Online)
/ref> consisting of meat or vegetables

braised Braising (from the French word ''braiser'') is a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is first browned at a high temperature, then simmered in a covered pot in cooking liquid (such as wine, broth, coco ...

with yogurt ( dahi), water or stock, and spices to produce a thick sauce or

gravy Gravy is a sauce often made from the juices of meats that run naturally during cooking and often thickened with wheat flour or corn starch for added texture. The gravy may be further coloured and flavoured with gravy salt (a simple mix of salt an ...

Etymology

The English name is an anglicisation of

Hindi-Urdu Hindustani (; Devanagari: , * * * * ; Perso-Arabic: , , ) is the ''lingua franca'' of Northern and Central India and Pakistan. Hindustani is a pluricentric language with two standard registers, known as Hindi and Urdu. Thus, the langu ...

''qormā'' (क़ोरमा, قورمہ), meaning "

braise Braising (from the French word ''braiser'') is a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is first browned at a high temperature, then simmered in a covered pot in cooking liquid (such as wine, broth, coc ...

".Perry, C. "Korma, Kavurma, Ghormeh: A family, or not so much?" in Hosking (ed.) ''Food and Language: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cooking 2009'', p. 254 It refers to the cooking technique used in the dish.Singh, D. ''Indian Cookery'', Penguin, 1970, pp. 24–25"korma"
Merriam-Webster, accessed 30-01-18 All these words, and the names of dishes such as the

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ian ghormeh ( fa, قورمه),

Turk Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic o ...

ish

Kavurma Kavurma is a broad type of fried or sautéed meat dish found in Turkish cuisine. The name also refers to canned or preserved versions of a similar dish, prepared by dry frying the meat to render down the fat. Similar dishes are known in Central ...

and the

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

qovurma Qovurma is a cooked dish that is part of the cuisine of Azerbaijan. There are several varieties, all of which involve stewing meat with fruit, herbs, or vegetables. Despite sometimes being translated as "kourma", the dish has no culinary relatio ...

or ''kavarma'', are ultimately derived from a

Turkic Turkic may refer to: * anything related to the country of Turkey * Turkic languages, a language family of at least thirty-five documented languages ** Turkic alphabets (disambiguation) ** Turkish language, the most widely spoken Turkic language * ...

word ''qawirma'', meaning " fried thing". The Indian korma is, however, possibly unrelated in a culinary sense to the modern Turkish

kavurma Kavurma is a broad type of fried or sautéed meat dish found in Turkish cuisine. The name also refers to canned or preserved versions of a similar dish, prepared by dry frying the meat to render down the fat. Similar dishes are known in Central ...

or to some other dishes using the same root word, as they use widely varying techniques and ingredients.Perry (2009), p. 256

History

Korma has its roots in the

Mughlai cuisine Mughlai cuisine consists of dishes developed in the medieval Indo-Persian cultural centres of the Mughal Empire. It represents a combination of cuisine of the Indian subcontinent with the cooking styles and recipes of Central Asian and Islami ...

of the

. A characteristic

Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...

dish, it can be traced back to the 16th century and to the Mughal incursions into the region. Kormas were often prepared in the Mughal court kitchens, such as the famous white korma, perhaps garnished with '' vark'', said to have been served to

Shah Jahan Shihab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram (5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), better known by his regnal name Shah Jahan I (; ), was the fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire, reigning from January 1628 until July 1658. Under his emperorship, the Mugha ...

and his guests at the inauguration of the

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

.Chapman, ''India: Food and Cooking'', New Holland, 2009, p. 26 Classically, a korma is defined as a dish where meat or vegetables are braised with yogurt or stock. The technique covers many different styles of korma. The flavour of a korma is based on a mixture of spices, including ground

coriander Coriander (;

and

cumin Cumin ( or , or Article title
) (''Cuminum cyminum'') is a

curdling temperature and incorporated slowly and carefully with the meat juices. Traditionally, this would have been carried out in a pot set over a very low fire, with

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...

on the lid to provide all-round heat. A korma can be mildly spiced or fiery and may use lamb, goat meat,

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantity ...

or game; some kormas combine meat and vegetables such as

spinach Spinach (''Spinacia oleracea'') is a leafy green flowering plant native to central and western Asia. It is of the order Caryophyllales, family Amaranthaceae, subfamily Chenopodioideae. Its leaves are a common edible vegetable consumed either f ...

and turnip. The term ''Shahi'' ( en, Royal), used for some kormas indicates its status as a prestige dish, rather than an everyday meal, and its association with the court.

Preparation

The korma style is similar to other braising techniques in that the meat or vegetable is first cooked briskly, or seared, using a high heat, traditionally using

ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from India. It is commonly used in India for cooking, as a traditional medicine, and for religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by simmering butter, which is churned from c ...

, and then subjected to long, slow cooking using moist heat and a minimum of added liquid. The pot may be sealed with dough during the last stages of cooking, using a technique called ''dum'' or ''

dampokhtak Dum pukht ( fa, دُم‌ پخت), larhmeen, or slow oven cooking is a cooking technique associated with the Mughal Empire in which meat and vegetables are cooked over a low flame, generally in dough-sealed containers with few spices. Traditions a ...

''. The korma can make use of a technique called ''

bagar Bagar may refer to: Esmeralda or a wicked black woman * Arpunk, Armenia, also called Bagar * Bagar, China, in the Tibet Autonomous Region * Bagar region, the sandy tract of western Haryana, eastern Rajasthan and western Punjab in India ** Bagri l ...

'': later in the cooking, additional spices are mixed with heated

and then combined with the sauce formed by the braising; the pan is then covered and shaken to release steam and mix the contents.Singh, p. 26 There is a wide variation between individual korma and other "curry" recipes. Chilli and ginger are often used, but the precise method of preparation results in widely different flavors.

Indian bay leaves Indian bay leaf is a common name for several plants with leaves used in cooking and may refer to: * '' Cinnamomum tamala'', also known by the common name ''tejpatta'' * '' Syzygium polyanthum'', also known as Indonesian bay leaf {{Plant common ...

or dried

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

may be added, the latter being a predominantly South Indian flavoring. A korma ''pilau'' (

pilaf Pilaf ( US spelling) or pilau ( UK spelling) is a rice dish, or in some regions, a wheat dish, whose recipe usually involves cooking in stock or broth, adding spices, and other ingredients such as vegetables or meat, and employing some techniq ...

) is a rice and meat dish made with braised meat.Singh, p. 154

Variations

In the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, a typical korma as served in curry houses is a mildly spiced dish with a thick sauce. It often features

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...

cashew The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus ''Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf cult ...

s or other nuts, and

or coconut milk. In the 21st century, chicken korma has several times been cited as the most popular curry in the UK, replacing chicken tikka masala in surveys of public eating habits.Chicken tikka masala no longer Britain's favourite curry – here's the new titleholder
, ''Daily Mirror'', 07-10-17

Navratan korma

Navratan korma is a vegetarian korma made with vegetables and either paneer (an Indian cheese) or nuts – or sometimes both. ''Navratan'' means "nine gems", and it is common for the recipe to include nine different vegetables.

Eid korma

In some parts of South Asia, ''korma'' is used to denote a traditional Eid al-Adha (festival of the sacrifice) dish of lamb, goat or cow that is braised in minimal or no spices. The flavour comes from the meat and fat of the chosen cuts. It was often done to preserve meats for a short-term period, as the fat layer forms a barrier to help prevent spoilage, similar to potted beef.

In Malaysia

Korma or 'gulai kurma' in Malaysia is cooked with coconut milk instead of yogurt. Meats used for kurma include chicken, mutton, beef and deer.

References and notes

External links

* {{Pakistani dishes Bengali curries Indian curries Mughlai cuisine Muhajir cuisine Pakistani curries Pakistani chicken dishes Telangana cuisine Uttar Pradeshi cuisine Foods containing coconut Nut dishes Anglo-Indian cuisine Bangladeshi cuisine Pakistani cuisine