Tandoori chicken is one of the most popular non-vegetarian dishes on an Indian menu. The name ‘tandoori’ simply means cooked in a ‘tandoor’ or a very hot oven, often made of clay. It does not dictate the exact spices used or the colour of the finished product. The dish cooks just as well in any type of hot oven. This particular dish has a unique flavour of ‘ajwain’ or carom.
In many British Indian restaurants, it is made with ready-made tandoori mixes, which include bright red/orange food colours, that give it a horrible red colour. I prefer not to add any artificial colouring and make my own tandoori marinade, which is very quick and easy to make in a liquidizer/blender. Spices are of one’s own choice. Any chicken pieces will do but my choice is small drum sticks or small thigh pieces on bone or chicken wings. Skin must be removed. Serves 6
Ingredients
| • | 1 kg. small chicken pieces or chicken drumsticks, skinned, washed and drained |
| • | Marinade |
| • | 3 tbs. natural yoghurt* (thick and creamy like Greek yoghurt) |
| • | 25 -30 gm. ginger, peeled |
| • | 20 gm. garlic (4-5 cloves), peeled |
| • | 1 tsp. crushed black pepper |
| • | 2 tbs. olive or other oil |
| • | 1 tsp. Garam Masala |
| • | 1 tsp. chilli powder |
| • | Salt to taste |
| • | 1 tbsp. dry fenugreek or methi leaves, crushed. They can be bought in packets marked Kasuri/kasoori methi (dry fenugreek leaves) from Indian shop (optional) |
| • | 1 tsp. carom or ajwain seeds |
| • | 1 lemon, sliced into wedges |
| • | 1 red onion, peeled and sliced into rings |
Instructions
| 1. | Stab each skinned chicken piece in a few places, using a fork. This helps to infuse the marinade. |
| 2. | Measure all other ingredients, except yoghurt and carom seeds, directly into a liquidizer and blend. |
| 3. | Take out in a bowl and mix well with yoghurt and carom seeds. |
| 4. | Mix thoroughly with the chicken pieces and leave to marinade for a few hours/overnight, in the fridge, in an airtight container (otherwise everything in the fridge will smell of garlic). |
| 5. | Heat oven to maximum. |
| 6. | Line a baking tray with aluminium foil (this saves washing up). |
| 7. | Place chicken pieces on the tray and bake in the centre of a hot oven at Heat oven to 240º C or 475º F (tandoor is supposed to be very hot), until nicely browned and meat begins to come off the bones a little. The chicken should look crispy and charred in places, as if you have cooked it on a BBQ. You will need to turn the pieces over half way through cooking. |
| 8. | If too much liquid accumulates in the tray, drain it off (it can be served with the chicken in a gravy pot). The chicken pieces should be dry, not soggy. Time varies in different ovens but it usually takes around 20-30 minutes in a preheated oven. |
| 9. | Serve hot, garnished with lemon wedges and sliced red onions. It can be served with curries, dals and Nan or simply with a salad, as a starter or as a light meal. Yoghurt Mint Sauce also goes well with it. |
Notes
| • | Marinated chicken can just as easily be cooked on a BBQ. |
| • | Always cook chicken thoroughly. I sometimes half or 2/3rd cook it in an oven, before cooking on BBQ. Half cooked chicken can cause food poisoning. |
| • | *Tips for cooking with yoghurt: |
| • | Always use full fat yoghurt, if possible. Skimmed milk yoghurt sometimes curdles during cooking. If you wish to use low fat yoghurt, add 1 heaped teaspoon of plain or corn flour per cup of yoghurt. |
| • | Make sure that the dish you are cooking is at room temperature. If yoghurt is cooked straight from the fridge, it may curdle. |
| • | When adding yoghurt during cooking, take out a few tablespoons of the hot food in a bowl, mix yoghurt, warming it a bit and then stir it back into the hot dish. |
| • | Substitute sour cream for yoghurt, using only half the amount. |
To print this recipe, open our printer-friendly version in a new browser window. Once you have printed the recipe, close the new window to return to this page.
If you have any comments or questions about this recipe, please post them to our Discussion Board, including the recipe name.
Content copyright ©2001-2010 Mamta Gupta and F² Limited. (All rights reserved. No copying without permission.)
Layout and design ©2001-2010 F² Limited. (All rights reserved. No copying without permission.)
Hosted by Clook Internet
All comments and queries to webmaster@mamtaskitchen.com
