Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe

Chicken Tikka Masala
There are various tales about the origins of Chicken Tikka Masala, and most are along the lines of the following: That a British aristocrat was served Chicken Tikka (chicken on skewers chargrilled in a tandoor) and sent it back to the kitchen, complaining it was dry. In response to which the enterprising chef added a curry sauce and sent it back out again where it was well received.

And thus, one of the most popular curries in the world was born. And even though it’s not a traditional Indian dish, the roots of it certainly are!

Proper Chicken Tikka Masala served at good Indian restaurants is made with yoghurt marinated chicken which is then chargrilled so it has that gorgeous smokey flavour.

Regretfully, I don’t have a tandoor sitting in the middle of my kitchen. So this recipe aims to replicate the flavour using my good old stove.

How to make Chicken Tikka Masala

We start off with a Chicken Tikka yoghurt marinade for chicken thighs. Thighs, my friends. Not breast! We need juicy meat for this recipe because we’re going to blast it with some serious heat to replicate the char grilled flavour of Chicken Tikka!

Leave it to marinade for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. Then heat your pan until it’s smoking hot – and I mean smokin’ hot!! – then cook those chicken pieces so the yoghurt coating gets chargrilled

Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe
Delicious. Just curious if you knew roughly the amount of calories per serving.
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 30 mins
Total: 45 mins

Ingredients

For the chicken marinade:

• 28 oz (800g) boneless and skinless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 tablespoon ginger
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 teaspoons garam masala
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili (or 1/2 teaspoon ground red chili powder)

For the sauce:

• 2 tablespoons of vegetable/canola oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons garlic finely grated
• 2 small onions (or 1 large onion) finely diced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
• 1 tablespoon ginger finely grated
• 14 oz (400g) tomato puree (tomato sauce/Passata)
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon ground red chili powder (adjust to your taste preference)
• 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili (optional for colour and flavour)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups of heavy or thickened cream (use evaporated milk for lower calories)
• 4 tablespoons Fresh cilantro or coriander to garnish
• 1/4 cup water if needed
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar

 Instructions

1. In a bowl, combine chicken with all of the ingredients for the chicken marinade; let marinate for 10 minutes to an hour (or overnight if time allows).
2. Heat oil in a large skillet or pot over medium-high heat. When sizzling, add chicken pieces in batches of two or three, making sure not to crowd the pan. Fry until browned for only 3 minutes on each side. Set aside and keep warm. (You will finish cooking the chicken in the sauce.)
3. Melt the butter in the same pan. Fry the onions until soft (about 3 minutes) while scraping up any browned bits stuck on the bottom of the pan.
4. Add garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant, then add garam masala, cumin, turmeric and coriander. Fry for about 20 seconds until fragrant, while stirring occasionally.
5. Pour in the tomato puree, chili powders and salt. Let simmer for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until sauce thickens and becomes a deep brown red colour.
6. Stir the cream and sugar through the sauce. Add the chicken and its juices back into the pan and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thick and bubbling. Pour in the water to thin out the sauce, if needed.
7. Garnish with cilantro (coriander) and serve with fresh, hot basmati rice.

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