Chicken Tandoori Recipe

Isn’t the name itself so tempting and mouth-watering…?? Yes, thats the speciality of Chicken Tandoori, our recipe for today. And those who don’t know how the dish was christened with the name “Chicken Tandoori”, here is a short intro:

The Tandoor is a clay oven and dishes cooked in it are called Tandoori dishes. It has fierce but an even distribution of heat that enables the meat to cook quickly, forming a light crust on the outside, sealing the juices of the meat, leaving the inside, moist and succulent after it is cooked. It is possible to achieve perfectly satisfactory results by using a conventional gas or electric oven setting it at the highest temperature, though the distinctive flavor of the clay-cooked Chicken Tandoori will not be achieved. “

My friend Sabah taught me how to prepare Chicken Tandoori. She taught it in such a simple way that I was able to pick it up easily and instantly.  However, you need to practice atleast twice to achieve 100% perfection. My dad loves the way I cook it and now he has become a great fan of Chicken Tandoori. So, i make it a point to cook this dish atleast twice a month and and watch him feast on it

Ingredients in the Chicken Tandoori Recipe:

• Chicken (legs or breast or a combination of both) : 1/2 kg
• Lemon juice : 1 tbl spoon
• Ginger (peeled and chopped coarsely) : 1/2
• Garlic (peeled and chopped coarsely) : 2-3
• Yoghurt (thick and set) : 75 gms
• Tandoori Color ( available at all Indian grocery shops) : 1/2 tea spoon
• Coriander powder : 1 tea spoon
• Chopped coriander leaves : 5-6 strands
• Green chilli (coarsely chopped) : 2-3
• Cumin powder : 1/2 tea spoon
• Black pepper powder : 1/4 tea spoon
• Garam masala : 1 tea spoon
• Salt to taste

Chicken Tandoori Recipe:

1. Wash the chicken pieces thoroughly with luke warm water.
2. Make length-wise incisions (cuts) with a sharp knife on each piece.
3. Grind ginger, garlic, coriander powder, cumin powder,
4. black pepper powder, garam masala, green chillies and make a paste out of it.
5. Prepare the marinade with yoghurt, salt and the above prepared paste.
6. Now add food color to the above prepared mixture.
7. Coat the chicken with the freshly prepared marinade and allow it to marinate for atleast
8. an hour.
9. Skewer the marinated chicken pieces and arrange it in an oven tray. Place it in the oven
10. and allow it to cook for 15 mins at 320 degrees.
11. Once the meat is cooked, it will be tender to touch, and will be ready to drop off the skewer.
12. Remove the meat from the oven and ang gently push the meat off from the skewer onto a plate.
13. Arrange the plate with sliced onions.
14. Garnish with coriander leaves and lemon wedges.
15. The juice of the lemon may be squeezed onto the meat just as you are serving it.

Additional Information on Chicken Tandoori Recipe:

Serving: Serves 4
Preparation Time: 45 mins to 1 hour
Difficulty Level: Easy
Calories: 629

Chicken Tandoori can either be eaten alone or can be served as a side dish to rotis, chapatis and naans. It can also be served with long grain Basmati rice, cucumber salad, grilled veggies, roasted corn. I suggest you to finish off this superbly tasting Tandoori dish with a Kulfi (Indian Ice Cream) to have a complete Tandoori experience!!

I hope that you will enjoy cooking this dish as much as I did writing it for you. Please do post your comments and suggestions so that the cooking methods can be improved if possible to get an even better taste of Chicken tandoori.

Tagged as: chicken, tandoori