Chicken Tikka Masala
This Chicken Tikka Masala is a family favorite! It's an ultra-comforting dish that hits all the right notes - spicy, savory, velvety smooth, and perfectly delicious.
Servings: 6 Adults
Calories: 722kcal
Equipment
- 1 Blender
- 1 Pestle and Mortar Optional
- 1 Heavy Bottom Skillet
- 1 Pressure Cooker (InstantPot) Optional
- 1 Sieve or strainer
Ingredients
Curry Paste
- 1 tablespoon Coriander Seeds Toasted
- ½ teaspoon Whole Black Peppercorns Toasted
- ½ teaspoon Cumin Powder Toasted
- Pinch Red Pepper Flakes Toasted
- 1 tablespoon Garam Masala
- 1 teaspoon Ground Turmeric
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cardamom
- 7 cloves Garlic
- 2 inch Piece Ginger Peeled and Minced
- 1 Jalapeno Deseeded and Rough Chopped
- ¼ cup Water
- 2 tablespoons Neutral Oil
- ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
Marinated Chicken
- 1-2 tablespoons Neutral Oil
- 1 ½-2 lbs. Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs Approximately 4 thighs
- 1 cup Whole Milk Plain Yogurt (not Greek yogurt)
- 2 tablespoons Curry Paste
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
Rice
- 2 cups Basmati Rice Rinsed twice with cold water until it runs clear
- 2 cups Water
- 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 3-4 Wole Cardamom Pods
- 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
Sauce
- 4 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1 Large Onion Finely Minced
- 1 can (6 oz.) Tomato Paste
- 1 tablespoon Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri Chili Powder Substitute plain chili powder if you can't find this.
- 1 cup Heavy Cream
- 1 cup Whole Milk
- ½ Lemon Juiced
- ¼ cup Cilantro Finely Minced
Instructions
Curry Paste
- Toast the coriander, crushed red pepper, whole black peppercorns, and cumin until spices become fragrant in a small saucepan over medium high heat, 2 - 3 minutes. The spices should start to smoke lightly, but not scorch or burn.
- Add the toasted spices to a pestle and mortar, and grind into a fine powder. (This step is optional. If you don't have a pestle and mortar, add the seasoning to the blender first and grind them before the next step).
- Add the toasted and ground spices, garam masala, turmeric, ground cardamom, garlic, ginger, jalapeno, water, oil and salt to a blender. Blend until a thick paste forms, approx. 2 - 3 minutes. (Optionally, this could be made with an immersion blender, and you could drizzle the oil in slowly as you blend).
Chicken Marinade
- Combine the yogurt and 2 tablespoons of the curry paste.
- Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces, approx. ½ - 1" cubes. While the chicken is on the cutting board, pour the salt over the chicken and rub to combine.
- Add the chicken to the marinade mixture and let sit at least 20 minutes. Overnight is ideal.
Basmati Rice
- Place rice in a fine mesh sieve and rinse with cold water until water runs clear.
- Add water, butter, salt, and cardamom pods to InstantPot. Add rinsed rice, and cover. Set time to 8-minutes on manual mode and cook. When timer goes off, turn off the keep warm setting, and let pressure naturally vent for an additional 8- minutes.
- Release the remaining pressure from the InstantPot. Remove the lid and remove the cardamom pods. Fluff the rice with a fork and taste for additional seasoning. Add additional salt as needed.
Sauce
- Heat a heavy bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 - 2 tablespoons of neutral oil to the pan and heat until slightly smoking. Add half of the chicken and leave undisturbed for 2 - 3 minutes until heavily seared. Flip and cook the remaining side for an additional 2 - 3 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and bring the pan back up to temperature. Cook remaining chicken and set aside. (The chicken does not need to be cooked all the way through - it will cook through when the sauce is simmered later in the recipe.)
- Reduce the heat to medium and add butter to pan and melt.
- Add onion and a small pinch of salt. Cook for 5 - 8 minutes, stirring occasionally until soft and some color begins to form. Scrape the fond from the pan as the onion releases some of its liquid.
- Add the remaining curry paste, tomato paste, chili powder, paprika and stir. Sauté for an additional 2 - 3 minutes, until everything starts to stick to the pan.
- Add the heavy cream and milk, stirring to combine. Increase heat to high and bring to a slight boil. Add the chicken back to the pan. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 - 15-minutes until thick.
- Add the juice from the quarter of a lemon, minced cilantro, and stir. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
Assembly
- Take several scoops of rice and place in half of a bowl. Place several scoops of chicken and sauce in the other half. Garnish with additional cilantro and serve warm.
Notes
Serve with fresh made garlic butter naan, and a mango lassi.
Nutrition
Calories: 722kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 157mg | Sodium: 1712mg | Potassium: 842mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 3025IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 203mg | Iron: 3mg
