Vegetable Korma is a creamy Indian vegetable curry with colorful vegetables in a sauce that gets its rich flavor from cashews and heavy cream. It's a vegetarian and gluten-free dish that can easily be made vegan.
In this easy recipe, I make a restaurant-quality curry in just 30 minutes using an Instant Pot or stove. Serve it with butter naan or garlic naan for a gourmet meal!
Mixed Vegetable Korma is perhaps one of the most ordered vegetarian curries at an Indian restaurant, right after Paneer Tikka Masala!
What is Vegetable Korma? Vegetable Korma is an aromatic, flavor-packed Indian vegetarian curry that is made using crisp, assorted vegetables and toasted nuts in a rich yogurt or cream-based sauce. It's elegant enough for entertaining or celebrating any occasion.
You'll be surprised how simple and easy it is to prepare at home. This Indian vegetable korma gets ready in under 30 minutes using easily available ingredients. And with a few simple swaps, you can make it vegan too!
Let's get started!
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Ingredients- Notes & Substitutions
This recipe is for a north-Indian style vegetable korma without coconut milk. Let's take a look at what we need:
Ghee: Good quality ghee adds an unmatched flavor to this curry. I prefer using homemade ghee, but you can use your favorite store brand.
Vegetables: I use a combination of green peas, carrots, and cauliflower florets for a more traditional choice. But feel free to use zucchini, beans, corn, potatoes, or even a frozen vegetable mix. You'll need about 4 cups of vegetables.
For the sauce: Like in most Indian curries, ginger, garlic, and Roma tomatoes (or tomato puree), form the base of the sauce.
Spices: We season this curry with commonly used Indian spices - salt, turmeric, garam masala, coriander, cumin, and Kashmiri red chili powder. Substitute red chili with paprika for a mild flavor. For all store-bought spices, always check for freshness and expiration date before using.
Cashews: Nuts provide a creamy texture and flavor to the sauce. You'll need to reserve some for garnish and soak the rest so they can blend into a smooth paste. If you cannot have cashews for any reason, replace them with blanched almonds.
Cardamom: Freshly ground cardamom gives this curry a floral, aromatic finish. For the best flavor, de-seed 2-3 green cardamom pods and crush using a mortar and pestle, or a rolling pin.
Scroll to the recipe card for a detailed list of ingredients and quantities.
How to Cook Vegetable Korma
Checkout step by step instructions on how to make this easy vegetable korma recipe even easier using the Instant Pot. This recipe will also work with any comparable electric pressure cooker.
Step 1: Prep
Reserve some cashews for garnish and soak the rest. Add cashews and water to a small bowl and microwave it for about 1 minute. This helps them plump up.
Step 2: Blend Sauce
In a blender jar, add the cashews (with water), tomatoes, ginger, garlic, salt, turmeric, Kashmiri red chili, garam masala, ground coriander, and cumin. Blend everything till the sauce becomes smooth. Keep aside.
Preheat the Instant Pot on Saute mode. Add 1 tablespoon ghee (or oil for vegan), and saute the reserved cashews for 30 seconds. Keep stirring to prevent them from burning.
Step 3: Pressure cook
Add the remaining ghee (or oil) and add the sauce. Saute the sauce for 2 minutes to cook off the raw taste of ginger and garlic.
Add the assorted vegetables along with water, stir and close the lid. Select Pressure Cook or Manual and adjust the pressure setting to 'low'. Cook for 1 minute.
How to Avoid a 'Burn' Message: If your pressure cooker is notorious for the 'burn' errors, start by greasing the pot with a cooking spray, then add ¼-1/2 cup water to the pot and pour the sauce over that. Add the veggies over that, don't stir, and pressure cook.
Step 4: Release pressure, add cream and cardamom
When the cooking time is done, release the pressure manually. Open the lid after the pin drops.
Add heavy cream (or coconut cream for vegan). Stir in ground cardamom and serve warm with cumin rice, naan, or paratha.
Stovetop Recipe
- Heat a heavy bottom pot on medium-high heat. Add 1 talespoon ghee (or oil), and saute the cashews for 30 seconds. Remove as they begin to turn a light golden color and keep aside.
- Add the remaining ghee and add the blended sauce. Saute the sauce for 2 minutes.
- Add the assorted vegetables along with water, stir and cover with a lid. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until veggies are fork tender.
- Open the lid, stir and check for seasoning. Increase the heat to medium-high, and add heavy cream, or coconut cream. Simmer for 2-3 minutes to thicken the curry. Turn off the heat. Add ground cardamom and stir.
Serving Suggestion
Korma is such a luxurious dish full of veggies that you just need a starch to soak up or scoop the creamy curry. Vegetable Korma goes great with cumin rice or naan.
For a whole-grain option, serve it with a homemade Indian flatbread called paratha, or brown basmati rice. These days, I find many specialty food stores carry frozen paratha in their Asian food aisles, so check those out as well.
For a low-carb meal, serve it with Indian cauliflower rice.
Preparing in Advance
Whenever I am making Vegetable Korma for a big get-together, I break it down into two steps, which allows me to prepare in advance.
I skip the veggies and pressure cook the sauce two days before the party. A few hours before serving it, I heat the sauce in the Instant Pot or on the stove, while simultaneously steaming the vegetables in the microwave.
Then, combine the vegetables with sauce, add heavy cream and cardamom and let everything simmer for 2-3 minutes. Done!
Try a Variation
Vegan Vegetable Korma: Substitute ghee with any clear cooking oil, like avocado or olive oil. To thicken the korma, add coconut cream instead. Open a full-fat coconut milk can without shaking, and scoop the cream on top.
Add Protein: To add protein to this curry, chop paneer (or extra-firm tofu) in ½-inch cubes and add it along with the vegetables. You may need to adjust salt accordingly.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- Vegetables are the stars of this recipe. I like using a combination of cauliflower, carrots, and peas, but you can use any assorted vegetables. Other popular choices are green beans, potatoes, and sweet corn. For cooking the potatoes evenly, cut them in 1-inch pieces.
- If you don’t like cashews or are allergic, you can use blanched almonds instead.
- To make this recipe vegan, substitute ghee with any clear cooking oil. And instead of heavy whipping cream, add coconut cream to thicken the korma.
- To add protein to this curry, stir in chopped paneer or extra-firm tofu along with the vegetables. Adjust the salt accordingly.
- If your blended korma sauce looks thick, add ½ cup water to it to avoid a burn message.
Frequently Asked Questions
This rich and aromatic vegetable korma is made of cauliflower, peas, carrots, cashews, heavy whipping cream, and warm Indian spices.
Depending on the region, Korma sauce is made in a few different ways. It can be made with cashews, heavy cream or yogurt, or sometimes, coconut milk.
Traditionally, Korma is defined as a dish in which chicken, meat, or vegetables are braised in a sauce made with yogurt, cream, or a nut paste.
Yes, there are several types of korma recipes. In addition to this vegetable korma, you can try chicken korma or lamb korma.
While curry is often made using a simple onion-tomato gravy, a korma sauce is typically made richer using yogurt, cream, or a nut paste.
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📖 Recipe
Creamy Vegetable Korma
Ingredients
Vegetables (around 4 cups assorted vegetables)
- 2 cups cauliflower florerts about ½ a large head
- 1 cup carrots peeled and sliced thin
- ¾ cups peas can use frozen (no need to thaw)
- ½-¾ cup water add as needed
Korma Sauce (blend together)
- ⅓ cup cashews about 30 cashews soaked in ½ cup water, microwaved
- 2 roma tomatoes or 1 cup crushed/diced tomatoes
- 1 inch ginger peeled, or 3 teaspoon crushed ginger
- 3-4 cloves garlic or 3 teaspoon crushed garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
After Cooking
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream or coconut cream (check notes)
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom (seeds from 4-6 pods). If using store-bought, add ¼ teaspoon and check for taste
- 1 tablespoon cashews, halved and roasted
- 1 teaspoon honey or agave (optional, skip for low-carb or keto)
Instructions
Prep
- In a small bowl add cashews and water, and microwave it for about 1 minute. Traditionally, cashews are soaked in water for 30 minutes till they plump up. But, by taking this microwave short-cut, I achieved the same results in 1 minute or so.
Blend Sauce
- In a blender jar, add the cashews (with water), tomatoes, ginger, garlic, salt, turmeric, kashmiri red chili, garam masala, ground coriander and cumin. Blend everything till the sauce becomes smooth. Keep aside.
Instant Pot Method
- Preheat the Instant Pot on Saute mode. Add 1 tablespoon ghee (or oil for vegan), and saute the reserved cashews for 30 seconds. Keep stirring to prevent them for burning. Remove as they begin to turn a light golden color and keep aside.
- While saute mode is on, add the remaining tablespoon of ghee (or oil) and add the blended sauce. Saute the sauce for 2 minutes. This cooks off the raw taste of ginger and garlic.
- Turn off Saute and add ½ cup water (or as needed) to scrape off any bits of sauce stuck at the bottom (deglaze).
- Add the assorted vegetables, stir and close the lid. Select Pressure Cook or Manual and adjust the pressure setting to LOW. Cook for 1 minute.
- When the cooking time is done, release pressure manually. Open the lid after the pin drops.
- Turn on Saute. Add heavy cream and ground cardamom, and stir. Simmer the curry for 2-3 minutes, until the sauce thickens to your liking. Serve warm with cumin rice, naan, or paratha.
Stove-Top Method
- Heat a heavy bottom pot on medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon ghee (or oil for vegan), and saute the reserved cashews for 30 seconds. Keep stirring to prevent them from burning. Remove as they turn a light golden color. Keep aside.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of ghee (or oil) and add the blended sauce along with water. Saute the sauce for 2 minutes.
- Add the assorted vegetables, stir and close the lid. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook for 10-12 minutes, or till veggies are fork tender.
- Open the lid, stir and check for seasoning. Increase the heat to medium-high and add heavy cream. Substitute coconut cream to make this vegan. Simmer for 2-3 minutes, until the sauce thickens to your liking.
- Add ground cardamom and stir. Serve the curry warm with cumin rice, naan or paratha.
Video
Notes
- Vegetables are the stars of this recipe. I like using a combination of cauliflower, carrots, and peas, but you can use any assorted vegetables. Other popular choices are green beans, potatoes, and sweet corn.
- If you don’t like cashews or are allergic, you can use blanched almonds instead.
- To make this recipe vegan, substitute ghee with any clear cooking oil, like avocado or olive oil. And instead of heavy whipping cream, add coconut cream. For that, open a can of any high-fat coconut milk brand, without shaking it. Using a spoon, skim off the cream at the top of the can. Use that cream to thicken the korma.
- To add protein to this curry, chop paneer (Indian firm cheese) in ½-inch cubes and add it along with the vegetables. You may need to adjust salt accordingly.
- If your blended korma sauce looks thick, add ½ cup water to it to avoid a burn message.
Nutrition
Laura says
This is heaven in a bowl! I cannot thank you enough for your delicious and approachable recipes. I never imagined I'd be able to cook restaurant quality Indian cuisine at home. Every recipe I've tried from your site is 5-star. Thank you!
Aneesha says
Thank you so much Laura! And thanks for taking the time to rate this recipe. Hope you enjoy more recipes from the blog.
Clare says
This was delicious and so easy to make. Thank you!
Aneesha says
Hi Clare, I'm very glad you enjoyed it. Thank you!
srimayyia says
Very nice recipe of Creamy Vegetable Korma. Keep Sharing. Keep Sharing
Aneesha says
Thank you so much, I'm glad you like this recipe.
Camille Frink says
Was very excited to try this recipe and thus disappointed when the instructions for the instant pot did not work. I did everything as instructed but kept receiving the “food burning” sign despite adding more water. Then after cooking the vegetables were not cooked through—I don’t think 1 minute is long enough. I kept repeating the 1 minute cook time as more and more sauce burned off the bottom, even as I added more water each time. I followed the instructions perfectly and have successfully used my instant pot before so I’m not sure what the issue is. Recipe seems to need revision.
Maybe the stovetop version works, but do NOT attempt this in instant pot.
Aneesha says
Hi Camile, I'm sorry you had so much trouble. From your description, it sounds like your cooker did not seal well, which caused the burn notice and undercooked vegetables. This recipe is on rotation in many readers' homes and the vegetables cook perfectly in 1 minute. Perhaps the sealing ring didn't get tucked in properly. Hope you give it another try!
Sailaja says
Surprisingly easy and yet so tasty. Honestly I never did a masala curry without onions. This is the 1st time I did and everyone loved it including my kids. Will definitely do this again - only change I did not add roasted cashews as my kids don’t like crunchy nuts. Overall loved it
Aneesha says
That's awesome, thank you Sailaja!
Sophia says
This is so good! Didn’t change a thing and 10/10 recommend.
Aneesha says
Thank you Sophia, I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for your sweet words.
Jill Jordan says
Hi
If I don’t add the cream can I keep in fridge or freezer for a few days?
Many thanks
Jill
Aneesha says
Hi Jill, If you're making this for freezing, skip the cream for sure and avoid vegetables like cauliflower.
Savitri says
We ate this tonight with pandan rice and we loved it, very very very delicious 😍😋😍😋😍
This recipe is now one of my favorites 😉👍!!!
We ate it vegan, so with coconut cream and without honey (we didn't add any sweetener at all and it was delicious as well).
I am against using a microwave, so we used a handful of raw organic cashews per person.
And because of my 6 years old twindaughters I used 1/4 tsp instead of 1 tsp kashmiri chili powder.
However, it was necessary to add ½-1 cup of extra water (and I had already added ½ cup of water along with the korma sauce and the vegetables to the instant pot at the beginning), because I received the burn notification before the Instant Pot vent came up (before the 1 minute cooking time started).
Thank you again Aneesha for this recipe.
Love from us 👩👧👧 from The Netherlands 😘
Aneesha says
Hi Savitri, that's so good to hear, glad you enjoyed it! As for water, I've added that in the instructions to make this recipe burn-proof. Also, you can substitute paprika for kashmiri red chili to make it mild for your daughters. Thanks again for being a big part of the Spice Cravings Community!
Savitri says
Yes I know I can substitute paprika for kashmiri red chili, and sometimes I do.
But I am in the process of building up their taste buds to get used to a little bit of spicy (not too spicy) food 😀😀.
And that is getting better, one of the twins wanted
last few days also birambi chutney (when I used it for myself) with some of the recipes I made from your site (like the "Instant pot rava idli steamed semolina cakes")👍.
Aneesha says
Awesome! Glad you and the girls enjoyed it! Thanks Savitri!
Teresa Cajigas says
I made this. It was simple, tasty, and never having used cashews in a recipe before, was super creamy. This is on regular rotation for any meatless day.
Aneesha says
Hi Teresa, sorry, somehow I missed your message. I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Korma is one of my favorite things to make 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to write such a sweet review!
Erica says
Hi, Aneesha. This recipe looks amazing and I can't wait to try it. I was wondering, if I wanted to add tofu, when and how should I add it? Cook it in the instant pot with the veggies, or cook it separately on the stove and add it in at the end with the coconut cream and cardamom?
Aneesha says
Hi Erica, thank you! You can add cubed 'extra-firm tofu' to this Korma in two ways. A) Add it along the veggies and pressure cook. B) Saute Tofu in a non-stick skillet with little oil and a sprinkle of garam masala till it's a light golden brown on both or four sides. Add it to the curry after pressure cooking. I would love to hear how you liked this curry! Enjoy!
Erica says
I made it this evening and it's great! I wish I could post a photo of it here. I ended up cooking the tofu with the veggies in the instant pot (one less thing to clean) and I'm really pleased with how it all came together. Next time I'll saute the tofu, just to see if there's much of a difference. Thanks for your help!
Aneesha says
Hi Erica, Yay, so happy you enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing! If you get a chance, please rate the recipe 🙂