Chicken Tikka
yogurt and spice marinated chicken, charred at the edges and still juicy inside
Start the day before. The chilling alone is 4 hr, against 50 min of actual work.
Allergens in Chicken Tikka: milk, mustard.
Ingredients
Quantities for 4.
- 700g boneless thigh, cut into 4cm pieces Chickenthigh, not breast: it survives the heat
- 200g, thick and hung 30 minutes Yogurtwatery yogurt slides off the meat
- 1 tbsp paste Ginger
- 1 tbsp paste Garlic
- 2 tsp Kashmiri Chilli
- 1/2 tsp Chilli Powderoptional
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric
- 1 tsp Garam Masala
- 1 tsp Cumin Powder
- 1 tsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp, crushed Kasuri Methi
- 1 Lemon
- 2 tbsp, heated to smoking and cooled Mustard Oilthe smoke point kills its raw pungency
- 1 tsp, to finish Chaat Masalaoptional
- to taste Salt
Cookware
oven, tawa
Checked against the ingredient list for ten allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, mustard, soy and gluten. Brands vary, so read the label on anything new to you.
Before you start
- Marinate twice. A short salt and lemon rub first, then the yogurt marinade, gives seasoning through the meat rather than only on the surface.
- Hang the yogurt in a cloth for 30 minutes. This is the single change that stops the marinade sliding off in the oven.
Method
- Rub the chicken with lemon juice, salt and half the chilli powder. Rest 20 minutes.
- Whisk the hung yogurt with the ginger, garlic, remaining spices, kasuri methi and the cooled mustard oil until smooth.
- Fold the chicken through and refrigerate at least 4 hours, better overnight.Longer than 12 hours and the yogurt starts to break the meat down.
- Thread onto skewers, leaving a small gap between pieces so the heat gets round them.Crowded skewers steam instead of charring.
- Cook at the highest heat your oven allows, around 240C, for 12 minutes. Turn once, baste with the leftover marinade and give it 5 minutes more.
- Finish under a grill or over a direct flame for 2 minutes to get the char, then dust with chaat masala and squeeze over lemon.The char is the point. Without it this is just baked chicken.
Safe temperatures: Chicken and duck are done at 74°C / 165°F, taken at the thickest part and clear of the bone. Reheat leftovers to 74°C / 165°F. FoodSafety.gov
Storage
Best within the hour. Cooked tikka keeps 2 days refrigerated and reheats acceptably in a hot pan, not a microwave. The raw marinated chicken freezes well for a month.
Nutrition Good estimate
One serving of Chicken Tikka (246 g) is about 327 calories, or 133 calories per 100 g.
High protein: 40 g a serving, 49% of the calories
| Per serving246 g | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 327 kcal | 133 kcal |
| Protein | 40.4 g | 16 g |
| Carbohydrate | 7.2 g | 3 g |
| of which sugars | 2.7 g | 1 g |
| Fibre | 1.8 g | 1 g |
| Fat | 14.8 g | 6 g |
| of which saturated | 3.3 g | 1 g |
| of which unsaturated | 9.5 g | 4 g |
Nearest database match used for chaat masala, garam masala. Estimated from raw ingredients using USDA FoodData Central.
More like this: Healthy Indian recipes · Gluten-free Indian recipes · Punjabi recipes
Times, yields, allergens and nutrition are guidance. Use your own judgement on doneness and on storing. More in About.