Biryani Chicken Korma Curry

Name: Biryani Chicken Korma Curry
Yield: Serves 8
Cuisine: Sri Lankan
Ingredients: 60 ml (2 fl oz/¼ cup) tomato purée; 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) soy sauce; 1 tablespoon roasted chilli powder*; 3 cloves garlic, ground into a paste; 6 green cardamom pods, bruised; 6 cloves; 2 cinnamon sticks, broken into pieces; 1 small chicken stock cube, dissolved in 375 ml (13 fl oz/1½ cups) boiling water; 2 teaspoons salt, dissolved in 60 ml (2 fl oz/¼ cup) warm water; 4 tablespoons korma spice mix (store-bought); 8 roma tomatoes, cut into quarters; 4 cm (1½ inch) piece ginger, ground into a paste; 6 cm (2½ inch) piece lemongrass, white part only, finely chopped; 2 sprigs curry leaves, leaves picked; 1 kg (2 lb 4 oz) all-purpose potatoes, unpeeled; 1 tablespoon vegetable oil; 1.6 kg (3 lb 8 oz) whole chicken; 10 cm (4 inch) piece rampe (pandanus) leaf*, cut into 2 cm (¾ inch) pieces; 2 red onions*, sliced

Preparation info

Serves
8

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Hidden Kitchens of Sri Lanka

By Bree Hutchins

Published 2013

About

This is a mild, aromatic tomato-based chicken and potato curry. It is mixed with rice to form the bottom layer of the biryani. This curry is also delicious on its own with fragrant samba rice.

Ingredients

1 kg (2 lb 4 oz) all-purpose potatoes, unpeeled
1.6

Asia
Sri Lanka
Colombo
Main course
Side dish
Spicy

Method

Boil the whole potatoes in a large saucepan until tender, then drain. When cool, peel and cut into 3-4 cm (1¼-1½ inch) pieces.

Place the chicken on a chopping board. Using a large knife or poultry scissors, joint the chicken into 8 pieces. Then, using a cleaver or large, heavy kitchen knife, cut the chicken through the bone into 4–5 cm (11/2–2 inch) pieces. Place the ch