Bengali-style Chicken Rezala or Chicken Korma is an authentic recipe that involves a handful of cashews and whole dry spices. The key here is to slowly cook the chicken with curd marinade until it releases the flavours and turns moist, tender and juicy. To know more about the ingredients and the techniques of cooking Chicken Rezala, keep reading.
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An Easy Recipe to Make Bengali-Style Chicken Rezala at Home!
Grind onion, half of the ginger-garlic paste to get a smooth paste. Transfer it into a bowl and wash the mixer. Then add cashew nuts, sesame paste and about 1/4 cup water and grind it into a smooth paste and set aside in a bowl.
Mix the chicken with half of the ground onion paste, half of the cashew-sesame paste, curd, salt and pepper powder. Marinate the chicken and refrigerate it for at least an hour.
Heat a wok with mustard oil. Add cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, bay leaf and dry red chillies and roast the spices well for about a minute. Then add the remaining onion paste with ginger-garlic and sauté for a couple of minutes. Once done, add the remaining cashew-sesame paste and stir it.
Add the marinated chicken along with the marinade, garam masala and salt. Stir slightly and cover it with the lid. Cook the chicken on medium heat for about 25 minutes until it is tender and cooked well. Flip the chicken from time to time and stir the curry so that the chicken cooks evenly. Once done, stir in sugar and turn off the heat.
Sprinkle saffron soaked in the milk to garnish and serve hot with kulcha/naan and pickled onions.
Recipe Notes
Recipe Tips For this recipe, you can also use bone-in chicken curry cut pieces. Share your version of this recipe Have you tried making Chicken Rezala at home? Do let us know by sharing your version of the recipe with us. Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat can I use to add a pop of colour to the curry? Traditionally, red chilli powder is not used for this dish. However, you can add 1 tsp red chilli powder before adding the chicken to give the curry a slightly reddish colour. Can I use eggs along with the chicken? Yes. Although the traditional recipe uses mutton, we can also use a whole chicken cut into halves and boiled eggs for this recipe. Is sesame paste necessary for this recipe? No. You can also grind and use poppy seeds too for this dish.
