~ Fatless Chicken & Vegetable Korma with Rice ~
My initial intention of stewing Oyster Sauce Chicken with rice has turned into Chicken & Vegetable Korma with Rice when I discovered that I have half a pack of Korma Mix powder sitting in the refrigerator for the longest time. I thought I will whip up everything to clear more stuff before the coming Chinese New Year festivity. Do you do spring cleaning for your refrigerator too? With lots of vegetables added to the Pot Stew and rice steamed on top of the stew, I used just 1 Pot and 1 heat source. This is a typical one stone kill two birds’ scenario that I frequently do on a lazy day. (Psst… Can I call it a busy day instead? :p) I have one stone kill three bird recipe 1 and recipe 2 too! (Those are for ultimate lazy days. Shhh…)
I first tasted Mutton Korma cooked by my mum when I was in my teens. I fell in love with it immediately. Unfortunately, my dad is not a big fan of spices. She never cooks again since. The thick gravy from her down to earth recipe with store-bought korma mix powder was something that lingers in my memory but it has faded away over the years. As I was working on incorporating that half a pack of Korma Mix powder into my cooking today, memories playback like the “Replay” button you hit on a You Tube videos. Back then, my mum has already been cooking fatless. She did not even add coconut milk.
If you are looking for a Chicken Korma recipe which uses lots of oil to stir-fry the spices before cooking up the chicken and vegetables, this recipe will disappoint you. This is a recipe for cooking without a single drop of oil. I do not add oil in meat cooking as they already have fat in them. Adding oil and stir-frying the spices will only add more calories to the cooking. While adding oil to stir-fry the spices adds fragrant during the cooking process where all neighbours in the village could smell, cooking without the additional oil brings out the original flavours of the ingredients. Take away that open stir-frying step and food will be more aromatic as you cook them with the lid on.
With the AMC Premium Cooking System that enables cooking without additional oil & liquid, controlled at the temperature of 98°C brings out the original flavour of the ingredients while optimizes nutritional values in food. So, try cooking meat without adding any oil and stew at the temperature of 98°C, if you have not tried this yet.
Fatless Chicken & Vegetable Korma with Rice Recipe (Serves 3) :
- 600 grams Chopped Skinless Chicken Thigh with Bones (cleaned)
- 3 tablespoons of Oyster Sauce
- 1 teaspoon grounded Black Pepper
- 5 cloves Garlic (smashed with side of cleaver)
- 2 medium Potatoes (cut into 12 pieces each)
- 2 medium Carrots (cut into 3/4 inch thick)
- 5 stalks Celery (cut 1 1/2 inch long)
- 1 large Brown Onion (quartered)
- 5 tablespoon Korma Mix Powder
- 200ml Water (to dilute Korma Mix)
- 200ml Trimmed Coconut Milk (Optional, alternatively add Yogurt)
- 1 cup Basmati Rice (200ml cup)
- 200 ml Water (for steam rice)
- 2 x Cinnamon Sticks
AMC Healthy Cooking Method :
- Marinate chicken pieces with oyster sauce and black pepper for 1 hour in an AMC 20cm Combi Bowl unit or any non-plastic bowl.
- Add Basmati rice and cinnamon sticks into a 20cm Softiera Dish. Set aside. Pour in the water right before placing the Softiera Dish into Pot unit in Step 4 below.
- Add smashed garlic into a 24cm 5.0 litre Pot unit and preheat with Navigenio heat level “3” to 50°C or “Meat Window”. Use Audiotherm as an indicator by turning it on, place on lid knob/Visiotherm, indicating 50°C or “Meat Window”.
- When Audiotherm beeps, indicating readiness for browning, maintain Navigeno heat at level “3” and turn off Audiotherm. Add chicken to preheated Pot unit to brown. Place smooth side down. Add all vegetables to Pot unit, harder chunks first (carrots & potatoes) followed by softer type (brown onion & celery). Pour korma mix powder diluted in water into Pot unit. Place Softiera Dish with Rice on the vegetables in the Pot unit. Cover Pot unit with a Classic Lid. Switch on Navigenio to automatic “A” mode. Turn on Audiotherm, placed on lid knob, indicating 80°C or “Carrot Window” and set for 20 minutes to brown and cook.
- As Audiotherm beeps, turn off both Navigenio & Audiotherm. Remove Softiera Dish with rice and place it on the upturned lid. Add coconut milk to Pot unit and mix well with a ladle. Place the Softiera Dish with rice on the vegetables in the Pot unit again. Cover Pot unit with an Easy Quick Lid (24cm Sealing Ring). Switch on Navigenio to automatic “A” mode. Turn on Audiotherm, placed on lid knob, indicating 98°C or “Steam Window” and set for 3 minutes to give it a final boil.
- At the final Audiotherm beep, dish out and serve warm.
Tips :
- If you do not use an Easy Quick Lid as per step 6 above, you may use the Classic Lid again and set another 10 minutes for the final boil after adding coconut milk. The final boil is necessary for the coconut milk to blend well into the meat and vegetables stew to create a thick and creamy texture in the korma gravy.
- To read more about Easy Quick Lid and Classic Lid and the differences between the two, you may read here.