Easy Tandoori Chicken Recipe
Who else is a fan of Indian cuisine here?
Indian cuisine has become so popular not only in my place but all across the globe.
It's commonly available in Kedai Mamak or Mamak stalls, with roti canai (Indian flat bread), dhal, biryani, curry, naan and tandoori being their signature dishes.
What makes Indian cuisine special is their usage of spices and masala as the meat marinade and their other dishes.
Today, I'm going to share on of their signature chicken recipe, which is Tandoori chicken.
Before I started, do you wonder how does Tandoori chicken gets it's name?
At first, I thought that Tandoori is actually a name of a special spice use to marinade the chicken.
I had no idea that the word tandoori is in fact is derived from the word "tandoor", a cylindrical clay oven widely used for cooking and baking in India, Pakistan, Afganistan and other part of Asia.
So Tandoori chicken gets its name since the dish is originally cooked in tandoor.
Nowadays, since it is uncommon to have a tandoor at home, Tandoori chicken is cooked by using a barbecue grill or grilled on a stove top.
I don't have barbecue grill at home since we rarely have barbecue party at home..
I cooked my Tandoori chicken on a non-stick pan since I was too lazy to clean my stove top if I use my mini barbecue grill basket to grill my chicken.
So, please choose the most convenient method for you to cook your Tandoori chicken, alright!
If you plan to enjoy your Tandoori chicken today, I would recommend to have the chickens marinated on the day before and keep it refrigerated in a ziploc bag until you're ready to cook the chickens.
Some of the recipe don't recommend to marinade the chickens for over 8 hours (I'm not sure why is it so), but for me, it is okay if you left your Tandoori chicken marinated overnight.
Just make sure it is chilled, to prevent the chickens meat from getting spoiled.
What makes Tandoori chicken special is that, the combinations of garam masala, paprika, chili powder, lime juice,fresh ginger and garlic gives the chicken zesty, earthy and warm flavors.
The marinate helps to tenderize the chickens, so they'll remain juicy after cooked.
Plus, the additional of yogurt, or you may substitute it with buttermilk adding a sweet and savory flavors to your Tandoori chicken.
It is still taste so good even without grilling it in a tandoor or barbecue grill, to add a smoky flavor to your Tandoori chicken.
Just ensure that you have your chicken well-marinated before you cook them.
Actually, this was my second time of making my homemade Tandoori chicken, and I like this version much more than my previous one.
In this version, I added ground coriander in the chicken marinade and had the spices stir fried first before incorporating the spices with the buttermilk. (I ran out of Yogurt stock at home, so I substituted with buttermilk instead).
Stir frying the spices will make the Tandoori chicken more fragrant and enhance its flavors.
I prefer to use dark meat chicken with the skin on for my Tandoori chicken since these parts are more juicy and richer in flavors.
We both love to enjoy our Tandoori chicken with naan bread, but it is also perfect to be eaten with white rice or biryani.
So Tandoori chicken gets its name since the dish is originally cooked in tandoor.
Nowadays, since it is uncommon to have a tandoor at home, Tandoori chicken is cooked by using a barbecue grill or grilled on a stove top.
I don't have barbecue grill at home since we rarely have barbecue party at home..
I cooked my Tandoori chicken on a non-stick pan since I was too lazy to clean my stove top if I use my mini barbecue grill basket to grill my chicken.
So, please choose the most convenient method for you to cook your Tandoori chicken, alright!
If you plan to enjoy your Tandoori chicken today, I would recommend to have the chickens marinated on the day before and keep it refrigerated in a ziploc bag until you're ready to cook the chickens.
Some of the recipe don't recommend to marinade the chickens for over 8 hours (I'm not sure why is it so), but for me, it is okay if you left your Tandoori chicken marinated overnight.
Just make sure it is chilled, to prevent the chickens meat from getting spoiled.
What makes Tandoori chicken special is that, the combinations of garam masala, paprika, chili powder, lime juice,fresh ginger and garlic gives the chicken zesty, earthy and warm flavors.
The marinate helps to tenderize the chickens, so they'll remain juicy after cooked.
Plus, the additional of yogurt, or you may substitute it with buttermilk adding a sweet and savory flavors to your Tandoori chicken.
It is still taste so good even without grilling it in a tandoor or barbecue grill, to add a smoky flavor to your Tandoori chicken.
Just ensure that you have your chicken well-marinated before you cook them.
Actually, this was my second time of making my homemade Tandoori chicken, and I like this version much more than my previous one.
In this version, I added ground coriander in the chicken marinade and had the spices stir fried first before incorporating the spices with the buttermilk. (I ran out of Yogurt stock at home, so I substituted with buttermilk instead).
Stir frying the spices will make the Tandoori chicken more fragrant and enhance its flavors.
I prefer to use dark meat chicken with the skin on for my Tandoori chicken since these parts are more juicy and richer in flavors.
We both love to enjoy our Tandoori chicken with naan bread, but it is also perfect to be eaten with white rice or biryani.
TANDOORI CHICKEN RECIPE
Cuisine : Indian
Serve : 2-4
Ingredients:
4 chicken drumsticks - skin on
1/4 cup of fresh milk
1 teaspoon of lime juice/lemon juice/vinegar (for buttermilk)
Additional 1 teaspoon of lime juice - optional of you prefer it slightly sourish
3 cloves of garlic - finely ground
1.5 cm of ginger - finely ground
1 teaspoon of coriander seeds - soaked and finely ground
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1/2 tablespoon of paprika
1/2 tablespoon of garam masala
1/2 to 1 tablespoon of chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Instructions:
- To prepare buttermilk (if you don't have yogurt), in a bowl, add a teaspoon of vinegar/ lime juice/lemon juice and pour in the fresh milk. Let the mixture sit for a while and curdle.
- Heat vegetable oil in a pan. Then, cook the finely ground coriander, ginger and garlic until fragrant over medium heat. Then add in paprika, garam masala, chili powder and turmeric powder, stirring often until fragrant, about 1 minute. Turn off the heat and let it cools.
- Once the spices is cooled, combine it with the buttermilk, add lime juice and season with salt.
- Cut deep slashes on the chicken drumstick to allow the marinade to diffuse in the chicken meat and coat the chicken in the marinade, cover or keep in a ziploc bag and chill until ready to be cooked.
TO GRILL OR COOK THE TANDOORI CHICKEN:
If you want to grill the chicken:
Prepare the grill so that one side is over direct heat and the other side is cooler. If you're using charcoal, leave one side of the grill without coals. Grease the grill grates with vegetable oil or you may use tong to hold the the paper towel soaked in vegetable oil, to prevent the chicken pieces from sticking to the grill grates.
Shake off excess marinade, and place the chicken pieces on the hot side of the grill, turn the chicken pieces so it is brown and a bit charred on all sides.
Transfer the browned chicken pieces on the cool side of the grill, cover and cook for 15 minutes (or more) . To know if the chicken is done, poke a hole at the center of the chicken using a wooden skewer or a fork, and it is cooked when its juices run clear.
If you are using a non-stick pan:
Grease the non-stick pan with vegetable oil. Once the pan is hot, place the chicken pieces and cook over high heat in the first 10 minutes, or until until it is brown on all sides. Then, reduce to medium heat, cover and cook until chicken pieces is done. You may need to slosh oil over the chicken pieces while cooking to prevent it from getting burned.
HOW TO SERVE TANDOORI CHICKEN:
Place cooked or grilled Tandoori chicken on a serving plate. Sprinkle sliced onion over and decorate with sliced lime. Serve immediately cooked or grilled Tandoori chicken with naan or rice of your choice.
Enjoy!
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