How to Cook Chicken Tikka Masala
Serves: 4
Ingredients needed to make chicken tikka masala:
For chicken tikka:
- 1 lb chicken breast, boneless and skinned
- 2 tbsp plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp garlic, minced
- Juice of a lime
- ¾ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp rgound coriander
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper
- ¾ salt
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
For the masala gravy:
- 2 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 large tomato, chopped
- 2 tsp fresh peeled ginger, finely grated
- Juice of ½ a lime
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 ½ tsp sugar
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp ground cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 1’’ cinnamon stick
- 3 tbsp water
Cooking instructions for chicken tikka masala:
- Dice the chicken breasts into small chunks and put them inside a resealable plastic bag or ziploc bag.
- Drizzle 3 tbsp oil into the bag and add rest of the ingredients for the tikka into the bag.
- Seal the bag and flip it over a number of times to coat the meat well with the marinade; leave it in the refrigerator for an hour or overnight if you can manage.
- Before grilling the chicken, grease a grill rack with a tbsp of oil and preheat it over high heat.
- Insert the skewers through the chicken pieces and place them on the hot grill rack.
- Grill the chicken for 4 minutes on each side over high heat and take them out of the skewers; set aside while you prepare the gravy.
- Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a saucepan and throw in the garlic, onions as well as ginger, once it is hot.
- Saute them for about 6 minutes or until the onions caramelise.
- Lower the heat to moderate-low and stir in the tomatoes.
- Put a lid on and simmer briefly until the tomato wilts.
- Open the lid and give it nice stir before mashing the mixture with a spatula until they form a mushy puree.
- Sprinkle the spices, except the cinnamon, followed by the sugar and a dash of seasonings; stir them well until properly blended.
- Simmer the gravy for about 5 minutes while stirring occasionally and then transfer it into a blender.
- Pulse them into a smooth puree and return it back to the pan.
- Drop the cinnamon stick and a dollop of butter into it, followed by heavy cream, lime juice and water.
- Increase the heat to high and bring the gravy to a boil before lowering the heat again to moderately low.
- Stir in the chicken and cook it for the last 5 minutes.
- Serve it with Indian flat-bread (chapatti) or saffron rice and dig in!
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
