Cooking Therapy

One of my favorite Indian foods is Chicken Tikka Masala. So, since I have been craving some Indian food, I decided to take a stab at it and make my own, and I got to say, it came out incredible. While I was making the sauce, it reminded me of making vodka sauce at the prior Italian restaurants I worked at, but without the vodka. I ate so much of it, that I ended up getting the itis. I even made some homemade naan for it, for which you could find the recipe when you click here. Try yours today!

Chicken Tikka Masala

Tender marinated chicken simmered in a creamy, spiced tomato sauce. Serve with jasmine rice and homemade naan.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Marinate 1 hour hr

Total Time 2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Servings: 4 servings

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

For the chicken and marinade

• 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts diced into large chunks
• 1 cup plain full-fat yogurt
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 teaspoons coriander
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon garam masala plus 1 teaspoon
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice about half a lemon
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried ginger
• 2 teaspoons red chili flakes
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon cayenne

For the sauce

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium red onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger root minced (about 1 chunk)
• 2 teaspoons garam masala
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 14 ounces tomato sauce fresh or canned
• 2 cups heavy cream

To serve

• fresh cilantro chopped
• jasmine rice
• naan bread

Method

 

1. In a large metal bowl, combine the chicken and all its marinade ingredients. Refrigerate for about an hour or overnight if you like.
2. When it is ready to cook, in a large Dutch oven or deep skillet, add the chicken chunks one by one to cook over a medium-high heat. Be sure not to crowd them. Cook them evenly about 2-3 minutes on each side depending on the size of the chunk. Remove them and place them in a paper towel lined plate. The chicken will cook more once it gets added to the sauce.
3. Once all the chicken chunks have been cooked, remove any excess liquid from the pan. Add the butter and melt it, combining it with the leftover remnants of the cooked chicken.
4. Sauté the onions until they are fragrant and become translucent. Then add the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant and they begin to soften. Add the spices and toast them for about 20 seconds in the pan, then begin to mix them with the onions and garlic.
5. Add the tomato sauce and mix. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes.
6. Then add the heavy cream and mix. Add the chicken and decrease heat to medium.
7. Let the chicken simmer in the sauce until the sauce begins to thicken and reduce.
8. Once the chicken has reduced, top with some chopped cilantro. Serve with some jasmine rice and naan bread.

Notes

Marinate the chicken for at least an hour, or overnight for even more flavor. Make my garlic and rosemary butter naan to go with it!