The photos honestly don’t do this Chicken Tikka Masala justice. This was the creamiest and most delicious Chicken Tikka Masala I’ve ever prepared and guess what? Butter and heavy cream weren’t used in this recipe. I don’t have anything against those two, in fact, I love butter but the cashews on its own help lighten the sauce and make it super creamy.
You want to marinade the chicken in yogurt and spices for 1 hour or more, preferably overnight. I like roasting the chicken and then letting it simmer in the sauce. I always serve it with basmati rice and sometimes garlic naan. You can also do steamed vegetables or throw them in the sauce and let them simmer along with the chicken.
I used chicken breast for this Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe but feel free to use thighs and even chicken legs.
Here I have some plain yogurt, Kashmiri chili powder, Indian curry powder, salt, and ginger garlic paste.
We’re going to saute the veggies, cashews, and spices. Blend it up and then pass it through a sieve to get a nice silky smooth sauce.
Chicken Tikka Masala
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless chicken breast
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1/4 tsp black peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 1 lb grape or cherry tomatoes
- 1/4 cup cashews
- 2 shallots
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tbsp ginger
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 3 green chilies
- salt to taste
- cilantro, for garnishing
Instructions
- Combine yogurt, curry powder, ginger garlic paste, and salt in a bowl.
- Stir and then add chicken.
- Cover and refrigerate 1-2 hours, preferably overnight.
- Remove the chicken from the fridge and let it come up to room temperature.
- Preheat the broiler and line a roasting pan with aluminum foil.
- Place the chicken in the prepared roasting pan, squeeze some lemon juice over the chicken and then place it in the oven for 10-12 minutes.
- While the chicken is roasting, heat some oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, bay leaves, Star anise, and cinnamon, cook for 1 minute.
- Add the shallots, tomatoes, cashews, green chilies and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Add the fresh garlic, fresh ginger, tomato paste, and season with salt cook until fragrant.
- Add water and cook for 15-20 minutes.
- Discard the star anise, cinnamon, and bay leaves.
- Remove the mixture from the heat and let it come to room temperature.
- Blend the mixture and then pass it through a sieve.
- Place the chicken in the smooth mixture and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Season with salt.
- Garnish with cilantro if desired and serve over basmati rice
Thanks for the tip about marinating the chicken in the yogurt overnight. I haven’t tried doing that before. I love chicken tikka masala, but I’m not great at cooking, and now I’m craving it! Maybe I’ll try finding an Indian restaurant for tonight.