Tandoori chicken is one of the most popular non-vegetarian dishes on an Indian menu. In restaurants it is often made with ready-made tandoori powders which include bright, artificial dyes and give it a horrible red colour. ‘Tandoori’ simply means cooked in a very hot oven, often made of clay. It does not dictate the exact spices used or finished colour. The dish cooks just as well in any type of hot oven. 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.
Ingredients
| • | 1 kg. small chicken pieces, skinned, washed and drained |
| • | Marinade |
| • | 2 tbs. oil |
| • | 4-6 cloves garlic |
| • | 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped |
| • | 1 1/2 tsp. cumin or jeera powder |
| • | 1/2 tsp. turmeric or haldi powder |
| • | 1 1/2 tsp. salt, adjust to taste |
| • | 1 tsp. Garam Masala. Use more if ready-made, because it is often bulked with cumin powder |
| • | 1/2 tsp. chilli powder (or black pepper), adjust to taste |
| • | 1 tsp. coriander powder (use coriander and cumin mix, when available) |
| • | 2 tbs. malt vinegar or lemon juice |
| • | 1 bunch of green coriander/methi leaves (optional) |
Instructions
| 1. | Stab each chicken piece in a few places using a fork. This helps to infuse the marinade. Keep aside in a large bowl. |
| 2. | Measure all ingredients in a food processor and grind to a rough paste and pour over the chicken. |
| 3. | Mix thoroughly and leave to marinade for a minimum of few hours. It is better left in the fridge overnight, in an airtight box. |
| 4. | Heat oven to maximum. |
| 5. | Line a baking tray with aluminium foil (this saves washing up). |
| 6. | Place chicken pieces on the lined tray and bake in the centre of a hot oven at 240º C or 470º F until nicely browned and meat begins to come off the bones a little. You will need to turn the pieces over and drain off any excess fulid that collects in the tray halfway through the cooking process. The chicken should be nicely browned, looking crispy and charred in places, as if you have cooked it on a BBQ. Time varies in different oven but it usually takes around 20-30 minutes in a preheated oven. |
| 7. | You may need to turn the pieces over half way through cooking. |
| 8. | Serve hot with other curries, dals and Nan or simply as a starter. |
| 9. | Also see: Tandoori Chicken 1, Tandoori Chicken 2, Tandoori Chicken 3 and Tandoori Chicken 4. |
Notes
| • | This dish can be prepared a couple of days in advance up to the point of marinating and kept in the fridge in an airtight container. |
| • | Marinated chicken can also be cooked on a BBQ. Make sure that the chicken is cooked thoroughly. |
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
