Meals · Mughlai

Shahi Murgh Badami

A royal Mughlai chicken curry in a pale, silky gravy of almonds, cream and saffron, gently spiced with green cardamom and mace. Rich, fragrant and barely hot.

Shahi Murgh Badami

Prep 25 min · Cook 40 min · Total 65 min + 1 hr marinade · Serves 4

Ingredients

Marinade

  • 750 g Chicken on the bone, curry cut
  • ½ cup Thick curd
  • 1 tbsp Ginger-garlic paste
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • ½ tsp Ground white pepper

Almond paste

  • ½ cup Almonds
  • 2 Onions, sliced
  • 3 Green chillies

Gravy

  • 3 tbsp Ghee
  • 1 Bay leaf
  • 6 Green cardamom pods
  • 4 Cloves
  • 1 inch Cinnamon stick
  • 1 pinch Ground mace
  • ½ tsp Garam masala
  • ½ cup Fresh cream
  • 1 pinch Saffron
  • 2 tbsp Warm milk
  • 1 tsp Kewra water
  • 1 tbsp Slivered almonds, toasted

Method

  1. Marinate. Mix the chicken with the curd, ginger-garlic paste, salt and white pepper. Cover and chill for 1 hour, or up to overnight.
  2. Make the almond paste. Soak the almonds in boiling water for 15 minutes and slip off the skins. Simmer the sliced onions and green chillies in 1 cup water for 10 minutes until soft, then blend with the almonds into a very smooth, pale paste.
  3. Bloom the whole spices. Heat the ghee in a heavy pan over medium heat. Add the bay leaf, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon and stir until they swell and smell sweet.
  4. Cook the paste. Add the almond and onion paste and cook on low, stirring often, until it thickens and the ghee starts to separate. Don't let it brown; this gravy should stay ivory.
  5. Simmer the chicken. Add the chicken with all its marinade and 1/2 cup water. Cover and simmer on low, stirring now and then, until the chicken is tender, about 25 minutes for bone-in.
  6. Finish with cream and saffron. Stir in the cream, saffron milk, mace and garam masala and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. Taste for salt, add the kewra water and scatter with toasted almonds. Serve with naan, sheermal or jeera rice.

Tips

Keep the heat low once the curd and cream go in, and stir often, so the gravy stays smooth instead of splitting. Grind the almond paste as fine as your blender allows for a velvety finish.