Recipes by Rupa Sethu

Chicken Tikka Masala

The story behind Chicken Tikka Masala is truly the stuff of legends! This iconic dish that graces the menu of pretty much every Indian restaurant, did not even originate in India! Chicken Tikka Masala, a classic Brit-Indian dish gets an easy makeover with a salt-free Tikka Masala spice blend from Savory Spice Shop. What’s not to love when you marry tender yogurt and spice marinated chicken with a creamy tomato gravy? Bonus: The kids will love it too!

Ingredients

  • Organic Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs (look for around 65mg of sodium/4oz – Hidden sodium alert!) – Factor about 2 thighs per person. Note – I like chicken thighs because they are very forgiving and don’t dry out easily!
  • 1/2 cup of plain greek yogurt or thick natural yogurt
  • 2 tbsp Salt-Free Tikka Masala spice blend (or combine the ingredients in front of the packet to make your own blend)
  • 1 tsp Turmeric
  • 2 tbsp Garam Masala, divided
  • 1 tsp Chili powder
  • 1 red onion, chopped
  • 2 inch piece of fresh ginger, minced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1 Serrano or jalapeño pepper (or any green chili of your choice), chopped
  • Around 5-6 fresh juicy tomatoes
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1/4 cup of heavy cream
  • Cilantro for garnish

Method

The Sauce

  • Sauté the onions, ginger, garlic, and chilis in about 2 tbsp of oil over medium heat. The flavor of a dish is directly proportional to the length of time you sauté the onions. Fact.
  • Once the onions are nicely browned, add the tomatoes. This is a tomato based sauce so you will not go wrong if you go heavy on the tomatoes. If you do not have good tomatoes on hand, you may use something like POMI chopped tomatoes (anything without a tinny taste – definitely not canned tomatoes).
  • Let it all cook down till the tomatoes are breaking down. Take off the heat and let cool.
  • Blend the tomato mixture into a smooth paste. This is the sauce.

The Chicken

  • Mix 1 tbsp of the tikka masala, 1 tsp of turmeric, 1 tsp of chili powder, and 1/2 tsp of garam masala into the yogurt. You can add fresh cilantro, lime juice, ginger-garlic paste etc. as well – its up to you and what you have on hand. This is your marinade. Pour over the chicken pieces and let marinate in the fridge preferably overnight.
  • Heat the oven to 450F. You want the oven to be screaming hot! Arrange the chicken pieces in a large sheet pan (lined with aluminum foil for easy cleanup). Bake for about 15 minutes. Then drain out the juices from the sheet pan and continue to bake for another 10 minutes or so until you start to see a nice color on the chicken – maybe even a few char bits. You can choose to just grill the chicken as well to get the nice grilled finish.
  • Let the chicken rest for about 15 minutes or so.

Putting It Together

  • Now that we have the sauce and the chicken, let’s put it together.
  • Start with a clean sauté pan. Add about a tbsp of oil and heat over medium heat. Add in a few cumin seeds and let it sizzle.
  • Now pour the tomato sauce into the pan and bring to a gentle simmer.
  • Add in about 1/2 tsp of chili powder, 1 tbsp of garam masala and 1 tsp of the tikka masala.
  • Cut the cooked chicken into bite sized pieces. Add the chicken to the sauce. Let it all simmer for at least 10 minutes. This allows the spices from the marinade in the chicken to mix into the sauce. Taste the sauce and make any spice adjustments as needed. We have not added any salt yet!
  • Once you are happy with the taste, take the pan off the heat. Finish the dish with the cream and garnish with some cilantro.

Chicken Tikka Masala is an absolutely delicious, saucy, tangy, spicy (but not too hot!) dish that is best served with fragrant Basmati rice and any flatbread of your choice – I particularly love the 2 ingredient naan since I can make it gluten free or not, add salt or not – totally customizable. Since we skipped adding salt while cooking, don’t forget to salt the plate! Enjoy!!