Chicken Tikka Masala
” Chicken Tikka Massala is now a true British national dish, not only because it is the most popular, but because it is a perfect illustration of the way Britain absorbs and adapts external influences. Chicken Tikka is an Indian dish. The Massala sauce was added to satisfy the desire of British people to have their meat served in gravy. ”
- Extract from a speech by British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook.
Though there have been around 50 versions of the same dish, I give here a recipe how I would like it.
Part I.
- 2 lbs. boneless chicken breast
1/4 cup yogurt
3 t. minced ginger
3 t. crushed garlic
1/4 t. white pepper
1/4 t. cumin powder
1/4 t. mace
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. green cardamom powder
1/4 t. chili powder
1/4 t. turmeric
3 T. lemon juice
4 T. vegetable oil
Melted margarine (for basting)
Part II.
- 5 oz. tomato paste
10 oz. tomato puree
2 lbs. tomatoes, chopped
2 t. ginger paste
2 t. garlic paste
2 t. green chilies
1 T. red chili powder
2 t. cloves
8 green cardamoms
salt to taste
3 T. butter
2/3 cup cream
1 t. fenugreek
2 t. ginger, julienned
honey to taste
Whisk all of the ingredients in Part I together in a large bowl. Add the chicken breast, cut into 2 inch cubes. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Bake the chicken for 8 minutes, basting with margarine twice. Drain excess marinade and bake for another 2 minutes.While doing this, make the sauce in Part II. Deseed and chop green chilies. Put tomatoes, tomato paste and tomato puree in a pot and add approximately 4-1/4 cups of water. Add ginger and garlic paste, green chilies, red chili powder, cloves, cardamoms, and salt. Cook over low heat until reduced to a thick sauce. Strain through a strainer and bring to a boil. Add butter and cream. Stir. If the sauce tastes sour, add honey to taste. Add fenugreek and ginger juliennes, stir, and serve with the chicken. Goes well with Rice or Naan.
Enjoy !
I’ve probably made tikka masala over a hundred times and just tried this recipe. I’d say that this is my favorite variation. The only change that I made was to grill the marinated chicken-delicious. Thanks!
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We made this recipe last night and it was by far the best curry we have ever made. It was fantastic!!
[...] close, i’m posting below a recipe of chicken tikki masala from the internet. Chicken Tikka Masala Part I. 2 lbs. boneless [...]
is the little (t) teaspoon and big (T) Tablespoon?
Chicken Tandoori Masala was invented by a Bengali music composer, Moslehuddin, when working in the restaurant trade in the city of Birmingham, in a restaurant called the Houseboat in the mid 1970’s.
The story goes and I can personally testify to this, was that he was unable to find long term employment in the U.K. and had to work in the restaurant trade. While there he was could not let go of his creativity and decided to try out several new dishes that would get a positive response from his clientelle. In one such creations he took chicken tikka pieces cooked in a clay oven and mixed it with chicken curry, making it milder than normal by adding liquid from yogurt and tomato puree or sauce. He got such a positive reaction from this dish that he refined it further and had it placed as a permanent item on the menu.
Of course it wasn’t long before other restaurants in Birmingham, of which there were many started to copy the menu item as many of the regulars at the “Houseboat” and later at the Shah on Broad street and then at Mosley’s on Broad street, which were all restaurants where Moslehuddin offered Chicken Tikka Masala in the 1970’s and 1980’s demanded the same dish as the one they had tasted at Moslehuddin’s restaurants.
Have you tried this recipe of chicken tikka masala http://www.food-india.com/recipe/R051_R75/R071.htm ?
I would love to hear your comments.