One of the staples of contemporary Indian cuisine is Chicken Tikka Masala. Like much of Indian cuisine, it features many spices and a thick, aromatic curry. An interesting fact about this dish is that this is not Indian, in fact, it is the national dish of Great Britain.
This dish combines turmeric and kashmiri chili powder to impart a bright red-orange color and garam masala to give the notable Indian flavor to the dish. Depending on how fancy the dish is intended to be cooked, one can use various levels of butter and cream to change the consistency. Obviously, we all love the smooth, creamy curry, but usually only for special occasions.
Recipe:
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp ghee
1 can (14oz) of tomato puree
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp of coriander or scallion to garnish
Half a lemon, juiced
1/2 cup plain, unsweetened, yogurt
1/2 cup water
2 cups tomato sauce
Spices:
1/2 tablespoons garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
1 tablespoon ginger, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili (not very spicy, mainly just for color)
Slice up the chicken into 0.5 inch cubes. Mix the yogurt, garlic, ginger, salt, lemon juice, and garam masala in a bowl together. Add the chicken and massage the chicken into the spice mixture. This step really ensures tenderness and flavor in the chicken itself.
Let sit overnight.
Preheat the oven 450ºF and skewer the chicken. Add the chicken to a roasting pan and bake for 17-20 minutes until there is a very slight amount of color on the outside of the chicken.
For the curry: heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add the ghee. After it has melted and somewhat melted, add the onions. Let it sauté for 1 minute and add all the spices. Add the puree, tomato sauce, and water. Let cook for 5 minutes. Add the chicken to the sauce, cook for an additional 10 minutes.
Serve warm with garlic naan or basmati rice and optionally garnish with coriander.
Enjoy!
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