Here it is, Treeb - it's from Meera Sodha's 'Made In India'. We've also done her Whole Roast Masala Chicken, Roasted Cauliflower with Cumin, Turmeric and Lemon (who knew cauli could taste so delicious?!) and Caramelised Onions and Jeera Rice (several times, with the addition of half a dozen cardamom pods). Delicious!
It all sounds like a lot of work, but it's some grating, some measuring, some stirring, some drinking of wine while you wait, then some plonking on a tray!
Oven-roasted Chicken Tikka (Murghi na tikka)
Serves 4-6 (or 2 adults, one toddler and lunch the next day)
Fan oven @ 180C
Lightly oil a large baking tray (she says two but I found one large one to be sufficient)
600g skinless, boneless chicken thighs (I used 2 large chicken breasts instead as we buy whole chickens then joint them and make soup with the bones) cut into 2-3cm chunks
4cm piece ginger, remove skin with a teaspoon then finely grate into a p&m along with 4 cloves of garlic and one green chilli, both finely grated (she says roughly chopped then bashed together, but I found that using a microplane does a better job) with a pinch of salt.
Mix together in a bowl:
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
3/4 tsp ground cumin (or crush your seeds)
3/4 tsp sugar
1 tsp paprika (not the smoked stuff)
1 tsp garam masala
1 1/4 tsp salt
130ml yoghurt (I used greek)
Add the pulped garlic, ginger & chilli, stir together then add the chicken pieces, mix thoroughly, cover and leave to marinate for at least 15 mins and up to a few hours.
Shake off any excess marinade from chicken pieces and put on tray. Cook for 20 mins, turning after 10.
I have also done these under a grill, on a baking tray for the first ten mins as the yoghurt/meat chucks out some water and it's easier to put a baking tray and the grill into the dishwasher and also prevents steaming), then onto the grill tray for the next ten, then another turn for a couple of mins to get the charred effect on the other side too.
I served them with little gem leaves, mint and yoghurt sauce, a little smear of mango chutney and sweet potato chips folded into home made flatbreads.
Let me know if you make it and what you think
