Chicken Tikka Masala

Ingredients

Chicken marinade

• 1 ½ lbs. chicken. Prefer boneless thighs
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• ½ to 1 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp cumin powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp kasuri methi
• 1 Tbsp ginger garlic paste or ¾ Tbsp grated ginger and ¾ Tbsp grated garlic
• 1 Tbsp oil

Tikka Masala

• 3 Tbsp oil (or ghee)
• 1 ½ cups onions, finely chopped
• 1 green chili
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp ginger garlic paste
• ½ to 1 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 Tbsp coriander powder
• 1 to ½ tsp cumin powder
• 1 to 2 tsp sugar
• 1lb tomatoes (pureed/chopped or 10oz – 1 ¼ cup tomato puree/passate or 14oz can peeled tomatoes)
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 Tbsp kasuri methi
• ½ cup heavy cream or 1 ⅓ cup whole raw cashews

Directions

• Chicken marinade

  • Cube chicken into 1 to 1 ½ inch pieces. Add to a mixing bowl. Make sure there is no excess moisture. Pat dry with paper towels if necessary
  • Add red chili powder, garam masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric, salt, lemon juice, oil, ginger garlic paste, yogurt and kasuri methi.
  • Mix well, cover with cling wrap and refrigerate. Recommend 3 - 48 hours.

• Make Tikka Sauce

  • Heal oil or ghee in a pot or pain. Add onions and sprinkle 1 tsp salt. Saute until deep golden – about 10 to 12 minutes.
  • Add ginger garlic paste and green chili. Saute until armatic, about 40 to 60 seconds.
  • Reduce heat to low. Add red chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and cumin powder. Stir well and quickly.
  • Add the tomatoes and cook on medium heat until the onion and tomato masala becomes thick. If using fresh tomatoes, this can take 7 to 8 minutes. Puree or passata takes about 2 minutes.
  • Add hot water and mix well. Bring to a rolling boil and cover. Simmer until thick, about 12 to 14 minutes.
  • OPTIONAL - cool down and blend to a smooth puree. Return to the pot and heat up. Ths step cuts down the acidity from canned tomatoes.

• How to make chicken tikka masala

  • Grill in Oven: While gravy simmers, thread the chicken to skewers. Bake at 460F for 9 to 10 minutes. Turn them over and bake for another 9 to 10 minutes. To char the chicken, broil for 2 to 3 minutes.
  • After 12 to 14 minutes of simmering in tikka masala sauce, add sugar and cream (or cashew cream, check notes to make your own). Stir well and cook for a few minutes until thick, creamy and aromatic.
  • Add the chicken tikka and kasuri methi. Make sure your gravy has reached a thick consistency before adding chicken. Thin with hot water if necessary. Stir and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until chicken tikka is soft and tender. Taste test and add more salt, garam masala, and sugar as necessary.
  • Turn off heat and garnish with cream and coriander leaves. Serve chicken tikka masala with butter naan, roti, paratha, basmati rice or jeera rice.

Notes

• You can start with chopped tomatoes if you intend to puree the sauce/gravy.
• Avoid using canned tomatoes with added citric acid
• Avoid using sour yogurt. If the yogurt is sour, avoid using lemon juice
• To make cashew cream, powder cashews finely in a grinder jar and pour 1/3 cup water into it. Grind to a smooth thick creamy paste. You will get half cup cashew cream. Later pour 1/4 cup water and swirl the jar and pour that as well into the gravy. If you don’t have a powerful grinder, you may soak the cashews overnight in 1/3 cup hot water, grind them with the same water to a smooth puree.
• If cooking tikkas on pan, they don’t need to be fully cooked but must be almost there. If you fully cook, they may dry out.
• To make authentic Indian, add 1 Indian bay leaf, 3 to 4 green cardamoms, cloves, 2 inch cinnamon stick to the hot oil before sauteing the onions. Discard the bay leaf and cinnamon before blending.
• Bell peppers and onions can be added to the marinade.