Chicken Tikka Masala

Believe it or not, Chicken Tikka Masala is probably the most popular Indian dish that is enjoyed by people all over the world. Having lived in the US for a while, most of my American friends have tried making Chicken Tikka Masala at home. I keep getting asked for the recpie ALL THE TIME!!! Tillys

So I figured why not share my little secret with the rest of you chicken tikka junkies :-). It's funny because I was watching a cooking show the other night hosted by a British Indian and she spoke about the popularity of Chicken Tikka Masala in the UK and said that it was the national dish of UK.www.tilly

Anyways let's get to bras stacks. Here's the ingredients to get you started.

Ingredients

1. 500 gms Breast Chicken

2. 1 Big Onion

3. 1 Medium Sized Tomato

4. 1 green chili

5. 6-7 garlic cloves

6. 1 inch of Ginger root

7. 2-3 tbsp of Yogurt

8. 1 cup of fresh cream 

9. 1 small can of Hunt's Tomato Puree

10. 1 tsp of Turmeric

11. 1-2 tsp of red chili powder

12. 1 tsp coriander Powder

13. 1 tsp of cumin Powder
14. Black pepper powder

15. Oil 

16. Salt to taste.

To marinate:

Add 2-3 tbsp of yogurt in a bowl along with freshly chopped garlic and ginger, 3 tbsp of tomato puree, red chili powder, black pepper powder and salt. Add the breast chicken pieces to it. Using a fork prick the chicken pieces so it absorbs the marinade. Leave the chicken to marinate for around 30-40 minutes. You can also leave it overnight for better results. 

Sauce preparation

While the chicken marinates, take a pan and add 2 tbsp of oil to it. Add one finely chopped onion, green chili and 2-3 cloves of chopped garlic to it. Let the onions fry until golden brown. Then add one finely chopped tomato, 1 tsp of turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and let is cook until the raw smell of the masala goes away. While our masala cooks and  gets mushy let's get to grilling our marinated breast chicken

Grilling the chicken

Preheat the oven at 450 degrees F. Cook the marinated chicken in the oven for approx 20 minutes. Once the chicken is cooked add it to the sauce above. 

Finally take a bowl and add 1 cup of fresh cream and 1/2 cup of tomato puree to it. Add some salt and black pepper powder. Mix it well and add it to the chicken that's cooking in the pan with the nice onion and tomato masala. Let it cook for approx 30-35 minutes. Garnish with some cilantro and serve hot with yummyy nan / rotis or some jeera rice. This can certainly be accompanied with a glass of wine. :)