Creamy Chicken Korma for Two

Korma has a reputation as a restaurant dish, rich and mild and a bit sweet, but it started life as a home dish in the kitchens of the Mughal courts, where cooks built sauces from ground nuts, yogurt and aromatic spices. This version keeps that spirit without the cream. The sauce is built from onion, a spoonful of korma paste and a can of chopped tomatoes, then blitzed smooth so it coats the chicken properly. A little ground almond adds body, and the yogurt goes in at the very end, which is the part worth paying attention to. Keep the heat low once it goes in, and never let it boil, or it can split and turn grainy.

A food fact worth knowing: almonds are mostly fat, but it is the unsaturated kind, which is why a spoonful of ground almonds thickens a sauce so well without making it heavy. Toasting the flaked almonds on top in a dry pan for a minute or two brings out their nutty flavour far more than sprinkling them raw. Watch them closely, because they go from golden to dark in seconds.

For the rice, basmati is the classic partner, and rinsing it in cold water until the water runs mostly clear helps the grains stay separate. If you are cooking for one more evening, the korma keeps well in the fridge for up to two days. Cool it fast, store it in a sealed container, and reheat it gently with a splash of water, stirring so the yogurt does not catch on the base of the pan.

To round out the plate, a crunchy salad works well alongside. A Turkish Style Carrot and Apple Salad brings a sharp, fresh contrast to the creamy sauce. If you want something lighter and nuttier to share the table, a Toasted Almond and Cranberry Wild Rice makes a good change from plain basmati and echoes the almonds in the sauce.