Tikka Masala

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An Indian dish — now thoroughly Americanized in our version — made with cubed chicken marinated in spiced yogurt and covered in a yogurt-tomato sauce. Best served over jasmine rice or naan. (But if you can do good naan, you don’t need our recipe for tikka masala, I’m sure.)

Ingredients

  • 1 pound chicken, cubed
  • 6 oz. plain yogurt
  • 8 tbsp. tikka paste (see recipe in Sauces category)
  • 1 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1/2 large yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, chopped or crushed
  • 1 small can mild green chili peppers
  • 3/4 in. ginger root, grated
  • 1 small can tomato paste
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 tbsp. lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp. melted butter

Directions

  1. Mix 4 tbsp. tikka paste with 6 tbsp. yogurt in a medium bowl.
  2. Add the cubed chicken to the bowl, covering well with the yogurt mixture. Marinate for 20 minutes.
  3. While marinating, heat the oil in a heavy saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and chilis, and fry for 5 minutes.
  4. Once all the vegetables are soft, add the remaining tikka paste and fry for another two minutes, stirring often.
  5. Add the tomato paste and water, then bring to a boil.
  6. Once boiling, turn down the heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes.
  7. In a medium pan, fry the marinated chicken with the melted butter until golden. Stir often to avoid burning the yogurt.
  8. Remove the tomato mixture from heat and blend in a food processor until smooth. (Note: it should be quite smooth, as the vegetables should have softened into a nearly liquid state while cooking anyway.) Return to the saucepan.
  9. Simmer the cooked chicken with the tomato mixture in the saucepan for one minute.
  10. Add the remaining yogurt and the lemon juice, then simmer for four more minutes.
  11. Serve over rice or naan with appropriate garnish.

This recipe was submitted by tomdavidson on January 23, 2005.

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