Indian

Chicken Tikka : Garam Masala Tuesdays

There are a few recipes I got courtesy my mom. One of them is this chicken tikka. Actually its part of the butter chicken (the indian version of chicken tikka masala recipe) that she handed out but now I make it stand alone too when I want a quick dinner for weeknights. Serve it with some pita/paranthas or naan, choose to make this salad or use it as a filling in chicken tikka pasties.

I love chicken tikka. I love tandoori chicken too, but when I don’t want to deal with bones, chicken tikka is the way I go. This makes a great appetizer to make for get togethers, plus leftovers are always used to make rolls the next day.

For the rolls, I half cook paranthas and break an egg on it, slather some mint chutney, ranch (or you could use mayo), some ketchup, sauteed onions and bell peppers and add the chicken tikkas. Yum! The only problem of writing a food blog is when you start writing about a particular recipe, you feel like eating that dish. I feel like eating chicken tikka wraps now. But today is Tuesday and V does not eat meat. Well…Marriage!

Coming back to the tikkas. Chicken thighs work best for this, but if you must you can use chicken breasts too. Just be sure not to over cook them. You don’t want rubbery tikkas.

There are only two steps in this recipe- marination and grilling. To get chicken tikkas that are juicy and tender, make sure you squeeze out any excess moisture from your yogurt, ginger-garlic paste as well as make sure your chicken pieces are dry, before you marinate the chicken. Let the chicken marinate in the marinade for at least 2 hours. While grilling, baste the tikkas with some butter/oil and be careful as to not over cook the meat. Once grilled, serve with lemon wedges, onions rings and mint chutney. You can also sprinkle some chaat masala if you like.

A note about the coloring: In restaurants, generally they add red food coloring and you can too if you want it to look like what you get in restaurants. I don’t because it doesn’t add to the flavor and I could do without adding artificial colors in my meat (read: saving that red coloring for red velvet cupcakes because those need it!).

Chicken Tikka : Garam Masala Tuesdays

Prep time: 2 hours

Cook time: 15 mins

Total time: 2 hours 15 mins

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (for the pictures I used breast meat but I always get better results with thighs)
4-5 tbsp yogurt/sour cream (if using yogurt I generally strain it to thicken it and remove extra water)
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste (squeeze excess moisture by pressing it between your hands)
salt and pepper
1 tbsp oil (if you have access to mustard oil that would be best else any vegetable oil will do)
2 tbsp gram flour/besan (helps the marinade stick to the chicken)
1/2 tbsp red chilli powder (or to your preference)
1 tsp kasoori methi (crushed between the palms of your hand)
1 tbsp fried onion paste (or if you are lazy 1 tsp onion powder)
red food coloring (I leave it out but if you want to mimic restaurant style then please add)
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp roasted cumin powder

Instructions

Chop the chicken thighs into smaller pieces (bite sized). Remove any moisture on the chicken pieces.
Mix all the ingredients listed under the marinade except for the chicken. Season the marinade and adjust the seasoning if required.
Add the chicken and let marinate for at least two hours, or overnight.
Grill chicken occasionally basting with oil or butter. I generally broil the chicken on a baking tray lined with foil and cook on each side for about 8 minutes, basting it with melted butter/oil and then turning it over and broiling for another 6-8 minutes or till cooked. You can also bake them for 15 minutes, turning them over in a preheated 425 F oven.
Once cooked (make sure not to overcook), sprinkle with some chaat masala (optional) and serve with lemon wedges, and onions and some mint chutney.

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