Chicken Tikka Masala
Truth: Up until I made this dinner, I have never tasted Indian Food.
Not that I haven’t wanted to, in fact, I have been begging my hubby to take me out to an Indian restaurant for years. My husband, however, (don’t tell him I’m telling you this) is kind of a wimp when it comes to spices. Shhhh! He doesn’t like to admit to it :) I on the other hand, think the spices add FLAVOR! MMM! Well after hearing my cute sister-in-law, Sarah, rave about one of her favorite dinners, I decided to make it and not tell my husband what it was until he tried it. She actually got the recipe from our mutual friend, Meg at Big Red Clifford, and now it has made its way into our family rotation.
As I was making it, I started to become a little nervous at how he would respond to this recipe. Seasonings are definitely a HUGE part of this meal. However, after tasting the sauce, it was like I could hear bells ringing in my head at the incredible flavor explosion this dish presented. I knew he was going to like it.
After eating it, he kept telling me how great it was… and thats when I laid it on him- that it was actually an Indian dish. Needless to say, we will be visiting an Indian restaurant asap to try out other yummy recipes.
Do any of you have a favorite Indian dish I need to try out?! I am in new territory here and can’t wait to dive into this new found flavor :)
Oh, and if you are looking for a great Naan recipe, be sure and check this one out… its our favorite!
Chicken Tikka Masala
By January 14, 2013
- Yield: 4 Servings
This dinner is JAM PACKED with delicious flavor and is surprisingly super easy to make! #dinner #recipe
Ingredients
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 2 tsp. black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
- 3 tsp. salt
- . . SAUCE .
- 1 Tbsp. butter
- 1 Tbsp. minced garlic
- 1 jalapeño pepper finely chopped
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- 2 tsp. paprika
- 2 tsp. salt more if needed TT
- 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Cut chicken breasts up into bite size pieces and toss in a large zip lock bag. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, black pepper, ginger and salt. Stir to thoroughly combine.
- Pour into zip lock bag with chicken. Seal tight and shake and move chicken in bag to evenly coat. Place in fridge and marinate at least one hour.
- After chicken has marinated for at least one hour, dump into large frying pan (marinade included) and cook on medium-high heat until chicken is done and cooked through.
- Place chicken in strainer and let remaining marinade drip off. Do not rinse. Set aside.
- In a large sauce pan, melt butter. Add in finely diced jalapeños and minced garlic and saute for one minute.
- Next, add the cumin, paprika, and salt and stir to evenly combine.
- Add tomato sauce and heavy cream to sauce pan. Stir to evenly combine. Once sauce has started to simmer, turn heat down to low and let simmer until thickened. This takes about 20 minutes.
- Add chicken to sauce and stir to evenly coat and combine. Let simmer a little more if needed until it thickens up how you would like it to.
- Serve with naan and/or rice.
Enjoy!
(recipe from High Heels and Grills and Big Red Clifford)
