Sandali Murg

White Chicken Curry

Non-vegetarian●●●Origin AwadhPrep 20 minutes, plus soaking timeCook 45 minutes

A mild, velvety North Indian chicken curry simmered in milk and finished with a rich paste of nuts, seeds, and sweet aromatics. The sauce is delicately scented with mace, nutmeg, and green cardamom.

Poppy seeds for soaking

11 gSoaked before grinding (step 1)

Poppy seed · Khus Khus

11 g4 teaspoons

spice

Keep whole for soaking in water.

Spices for the paste

3 gBlended into the nut paste (step 3)

Mace blade · Javitri

0.5–0.8 g2–3 pieces

spice

Nutmeg · Jaiphalgrated

2.5 g½ nutmeg

spice

Leave the mace whole and grated nutmeg ready to blend.

Everything else

Four-seed mix (melon, pumpkin, squash and watermelon) · Char Magaz See the glossary: Chaar magaz →

30 g3 tablespoons

nut/seed

Ghee

125 g

oil/fat

Chicken · Murghcut into pieces

1200 g1 chicken

poultry

Milk · Doodh

776 g750 ml

dairy

Blanched almond · Badam

18 g2 tablespoons

nut/seed

Salt · Namak

to taste

salt

Method

Place 3 tablespoon char magaz and the poppy seeds for soaking (11.2 g) into two separate bowls, cover each with water, and let them stand for 2 to 3 hours. Drain both before using.
Warm 125 g ghee in a heavy pan set over medium heat. Add 1200 g chicken, cut into pieces, and fry gently for 8 minutes. Move the chicken to another pot, pour in 776 g milk, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes until the meat is thoroughly cooked.
Transfer the drained char magaz and drained poppy seeds to a blender along with 2 tablespoon almonds, 6 cardamom seeds, and the spices for the paste (0.5–0.8 g mace blade and 2.5 g nutmeg, grated). Blitz to a fine puree, adding a small splash of water if required to loosen.
Return the pan containing the reserved cooking ghee to the heat, spoon in the nut and spice paste, and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Stir the fried paste into the pot of chicken and milk, and season with salt to taste. Place a lid on the pan and simmer over very low heat for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Don't have something?

Char magaz

Melon seeds
Use the same weight; soak in warm water for 20 minutes, rub off any skins and grind. It is the main component, so the dish will be very close but slightly less rich.
Blanched almond
Use 75% of the weight; soak in warm water and grind to a paste. Adds a sweeter, nuttier thickness.
Cashew nut
Use 70% of the weight; soak and grind. Makes the gravy richer and creamier.

Poppy seed

Cashew nut
Use equal weight. Soak in warm water for 20 minutes and grind to a smooth paste; produces an even creamier, slightly richer gravy than poppy seeds.
White sesame seed
Use equal weight. Soak and grind finely; provides similar thickening and body with a slightly nuttier, faintly bitter edge.
Almond
Use equal weight. Blanch, peel, and grind finely with a splash of water; lends a velvety body and gentle sweetness to gravies.

Ghee

Unsalted butter
Use 120% of the weight; melt gently over low heat to avoid burning the milk solids, which will yield a softer, creamier richness rather than a nutty aroma.
Vegetable oil
Use 85% of the weight; holds high cooking temperatures without smoking, but the final dish will lack traditional dairy depth.
Mustard oil
Use equal weight; heat to smoking point and cool slightly before cooking, bearing in mind it introduces an assertive, pungent edge.

Chicken

Turkey thigh
Use 100% of the weight, cut into equivalent bone-in or boneless pieces. Simmer for an extra 5 to 10 minutes; flavour and texture are very similar.
Lamb
Use 100% of the weight. Cut into bite-sized pieces and extend simmering time by 35 to 50 minutes, adding extra liquid to allow the meat to tenderise.

Milk

Whole milk
Use equal weight; provides the standard rich dairy fat and body expected in creamy Indian bases.
Single cream
Dilute 3 parts cream with 1 part water to match the weight; yields a richer, glossier gravy that resists curdling.
Plain yogurt
Whisk thoroughly and use equal weight; adds extra body and a mild pleasant acidity, best added off the heat.

Blanched almond

Almond
Use the same weight; cover with hot water for 5 minutes, then slip off the skins.
Blanched split almond
Use the same weight; they are already peeled and split, so use whole or chop as needed.
Cashew nut
Use the same weight; soak in warm water before grinding. They are softer and richer, so the dish will be creamier.

Mace blade

Ground mace
Use 0.5 g ground mace for 1 g mace blade; add towards the end of frying spices as ground powder burns much quicker than whole blades.
Nutmeg
Grate finely, using 50% of the weight; sweeter, deeper, and slightly heavier in aroma than delicate mace.
Ground nutmeg
Use 40% of the weight; stir in gently with ground spices, avoiding high direct heat to prevent bitterness.

Nutmeg

Ground nutmeg
Use equal weight, or roughly 1/2 teaspoon for half a whole nutmeg. Stir in near the end of cooking as pre-ground loses aroma quickly.
Mace blade
Use about 70% of the weight, finely ground. Mace comes from the same fruit and provides a very similar but slightly lighter, more floral warmth.
Ground mace
Use equal weight. Delivers a slightly sharper, more delicate sweetness to rich kormas and biryanis.

Green cardamom seed

Green cardamom pod
Weigh roughly 2.5 times the seed requirement; crack pods open and discard the fibrous green husks.
Ground green cardamom
Use 75% of the weight; stir in off the flame or near the end of cooking to maintain its fragrance.

Similar dishes

Chaar Magaz ka Murg

Chicken with Melon Seeds

Chaar Magaz ka Murg tastes tangier from yogurt and more floral and complexly spiced than this sweet, rich, and purely milky dish.

Same: Chaar Magaz ka Murg also simmers chicken in ghee and milk seasoned with poppy seeds and nutmeg.
Different: Chaar Magaz ka Murg uses stuffed chicken, less milk, and yogurt as a souring agent, while adding onions, saffron, cloves, cardamom, and kewra or rosewater instead of mace.

Kundan Murg

White Chicken

Kundan Murg tastes tangier and lightly hot from yoghurt and green chilli with a coconut note, while this dish tastes richer, nuttier, and sweeter with mace, nutmeg, and cardamom.

Same: Kundan Murg shares chicken simmered in milk with ghee, green cardamom, and salt, and both are pale, mild curries.
Different: Kundan Murg uses yoghurt as a souring agent plus green chilli, desiccated coconut, bay leaf, and whole green cardamom, while this dish uses a nut-and-seed paste of char magaz, poppy seed, and almond with mace and nutmeg and much more ghee and milk.

Aksa Pok

Chicken with Ginger

Aksa Pok has a sharp, pungent, and peppery heat from ginger and chilli, whereas this dish is mild, rich, and sweet-scented from dairy and warming spices.

Same: Both dishes center on chicken simmered into a savory liquid base.
Different: Aksa Pok is prepared as a broth simmered with rice, ginger paste, and dried red chilli, omitting the milk, ghee, poppy seeds, mace, and nutmeg found in this dish.

Trami Kokur Safed

Chicken in White Sauce

It tastes more of fennel, clove, and cinnamon and is less nutty and velvety than this dish, with a thinner coating rather than a rich nut-thickened sauce.

Same: Trami Kokur Safed shares chicken, milk, ghee, and salt with this dish, and both are mild white curries with no souring agent.
Different: It lacks this dish's char magaz, poppy seed, almond, mace, nutmeg, and green cardamom, and it uses ground fennel, ginger, clove, and cinnamon instead; it may use vegetable oil and braises until the milk evaporates rather than finishing with a nut paste.