The very popular tandoori chicken recipe served with rice.
Tandoori chicken is one of the most famous Indian dishes and is available almost all over the world. The word tandoori refers to a style of cooking that uses a clay oven known as a tandoor. Traditionally, a charcoal or wood-fed oven was used. However, nowadays in most places, electric tandoors have replaced them. However, cooking in a traditional clay tandoor gives the food a unique flavor that is difficult to replicate in the modern version.
A tandoor is also used for cooking other foods than tandoori chicken, such as chicken tikka masala, naan bread, tandoori roti etc. Most meat dishes and some types of breads are cooked in a tandoor.
Among the popular tandoori dishes are tandoori chicken. To make this dish, the chicken is marinated in yogurt and a range of seasonings such as garam masala, garlic, ginger, cumin, pepper and oil. In restaurants, orange or red food color is often added to the dish. Tandoori chicken is mostly served with wedges of lime, onions and mint chutney.
Ingredients
For the 1st marinade
- ½ tablespoon crushed fresh root ginger
- ½ tablespoon crushed garlic
- 1 teaspoon ground red chili
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the chicken
- 4 chicken breasts on the bone, skinned
- Melted butter for basting
- 1½ tsp lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon chaat masala
- Salt to taste
For the 2nd marinade
- 9oz yogurt
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 3½fl oz vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground red chili
- 1 teaspoon salt
Directions
Mix the ginger, garlic, chilli, lemon juice, and salt to form a paste. Rub this marinade all over the chicken breasts and place it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
In the meantime, combine the yoghurt, garam masala, vegetable oil, cinnamon, chilli and salt together. Add this second marinade to the chicken and ensure it gets evenly coated. Now place the chicken in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 400 deg. F.
Thread the chicken onto skewers and place the skewers on a non-stick baking tray. Bake for 3 minutes. Lower the temperature to 325 deg. F and cook for another 15 minutes.
Now baste the chicken with the melted butter and cook until the chicken is done. Take the tandoori chicken out of the oven, and baste it once more. Drizzle lemon juice and chaat masala just before serving.
Tips
Chaat masala is a mixture of different spices and is easily available at most Asian stores. Picture credits go to thebittenworld.com.
