This is an easy baked Tandoori Chicken recipe for everyone who happens not to have a tandoor sitting in the middle of your kitchen! Made with accessible ingredients from scratch, chicken is infused with flavour from a yogurt tandoori chicken marinade then baked until golden with little charred bits.
Butter Chicken, Chicken Tikka Masala or Tandoori Chicken?? Any outing to an Indian restaurant causes a crisis of indecision as we battle it out between these 3 wildly popular Indian chicken dishes!.
The smokey, chargrilled flavor of Tandoori chicken is one of the main reasons we love it. This flavor can only be achieved in a clay tandoor that is made to withstand intense charcoal heat.
But don’t worry, you won’t miss the chargrill flavour in this Tandoori Chicken recipe. My trick is to jack up the flavour of the marinade to compensate – we’re talking big, big flavours here!.
Kashmiri Chilli is what gives Tandoori the signature red colour. You’ll need to find an Indian grocery store to get this. It tastes like paprika with a bit of heat. It’s okay, paprika works just as well! The chicken won’t be as red, but it will still have a red color. You can easily increase the redness with a drop or two of red food colouring.
Tandoori chicken is a popular Indian dish. The chicken is marinated in yogurt and spices and then roasted in a tandoor, which is a round clay oven. Tandoori chicken is famous all over the world for its bright red color and smokey flavor. What is this famous dish made of, though? Let’s take a closer look at the steps.
A Brief History
Tandoori chicken originated in Punjab, a region divided between India and Pakistan after partition in 1947. It was popularized in the late 1940s at the Moti Mahal restaurant in Delhi, India by Kundan Lal Jaggi, Kundan Lal Gujral and Thakur Das Magu. They invented the modern recipe by marinating chicken in yogurt and spices before cooking it in the intense heat of a tandoor oven.
When India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru ate tandoori chicken at an official dinner soon after, it became a standard dish at such events. Since the 1960s, it has been on American menus and is known all over the world.
Traditional Ingredients
The marinade is what gives tandoori chicken its unique flavors and colors. Here are the main ingredients:
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Yogurt: As the base of the marinade, yogurt makes the chicken tender and lets the spices stick to it.
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Spices – A blend of spices like garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin, garam masala, cayenne pepper, turmeric and more.
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Food coloring – Often red food coloring from annatto seeds or expensive saffron. This gives it the reddish-orange hue.
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Tandoor oven – The extremely high heat of the clay tandoor oven is crucial for the cooking process.
Step-by-Step Method
Here is a step-by-step overview of how authentic tandoori chicken is made:
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Marinate the chicken – Boneless chicken pieces are marinated for hours or overnight in the yogurt and spice mixture to absorb flavors.
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Skewer the chicken – The marinated chicken pieces are threaded onto metal skewers.
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Cook in a tandoor – Skewered chicken is lowered into the 900°F/480°C tandoor oven and roasted by the intense charcoal or wood-fired heat.
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Char and smoke – Chicken is cooked until tender and slightly charred. Smoke from the fire adds to the flavor.
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Optional: Finish on grill – For added smoky char, the chicken can be finished by grilling briefly over charcoal.
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Garnish and serve – Once done, tandoori chicken is often garnished with cilantro and served with rice, naan, onions, and chutneys.
Tandoori Chicken at Home
Recreating the authentic taste of tandoori chicken is possible in a home oven by using a similar marinade and cooking method:
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Marinate chicken pieces in yogurt, spices, and color as described above.
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Cook in a very hot 450°F/230°C oven, charring it under the broiler.
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For smoky flavor, finish on an outdoor grill or use smoked paprika in the marinade.
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Serve with naan or rice and tangy chutneys or raita.
While the charcoal-fired tandoor oven is ideal, a basic home oven or grill can produce delicious tandoori chicken with the right technique.
Common Variations
The popularity of tandoori chicken has led to many variations:
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Chicken tikka – Boneless cubes of chicken marinated and roasted.
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Chicken tikka masala – Chicken tikka in a creamy tomato gravy.
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Tandoori paneer – Cheese cubes roasted in the tandoori style.
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Tandoori fish – Fish fillets marinated and cooked like tandoori chicken.
With a long history dating back to Punjab and a signature spiced yogurt marinade, tandoori chicken has become a beloved Indian dish and international favorite. Though traditionally cooked in a blazing hot tandoor oven, the marinated chicken can be easily made at home using a regular oven or grill. Served as a starter or main with naan or rice, tandoori chicken is a treat for the senses, with its rich red color, tender meat, and smoky aroma.
What to serve with Tandoori chicken
Here’s what I serve with Tandoori Chicken:
- Saffron Rice– love the colour contrast! Recipe below. In a pinch, plain basmati rice (or any other rice you like) will do.
- Indian food goes great with mint yogurt because the mint is fresh and the yogurt is cool. Recipe below.
- Indian Tomato Salad is a great side dish. You can also use the same dressing on cucumber slices. If not, try this cabbage dish made in the South Indian style. You can also make Everyday Cabbage Salad instead; it’s in the recipe notes.
- Flatbreads—When people really want naan, I make my Easy No Yeast Flatbreads. I like to brush the flatbreads with garlic butter to make them taste even better because the curry isn’t very saucy. SO GOOD!
* Fresh side salads are less common in Indian cuisine, vegetables tend to be cooked. So don’t get too caught up about an authentic fresh side salad – go with what you like! – Nagi x.
How to make it
The making part is very straight forward: mix marinate, add the chicken, then leave to marinate. 12 to 24 hours is best, or 48 hours. If you’re in a rush, then 2 to 3 hours will do the trick if you cut slashes into the chicken.
While this is a baked tandoori chicken recipe, it’s a ripper on the barbie too. And off the charts amazing if cooked over charcoal!.
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FAQ
What is chicken tandoori made of?
Tandoori chicken is a dish made from chicken marinated in yogurt and spices and roasted in a tandoor, a cylindrical clay oven. The dish is now popular worldwide. The modern form of the dish was popularized by the Moti Mahal restaurant in New Delhi, India in the late 1940s.
How is tandoori cooked?
If you’ve never come across a tandoor oven before, imagine a hollow drum standing upright with a small fire heating from the bottom. Meat is lowered into the oven on long metal skewers and cooked quickly in a smoky, high-temperature environment to seal in juices and flavor.
Is tandoori chicken healthy?
Yes, tandoori chicken can be a healthy option, particularly when compared to other chicken dishes that are deep-fried or heavily sauced. It is a good source of protein and can be relatively low in fat, especially if prepared with less oil.
How does tandoori chicken get so red?
Most tandoori chicken gets its bright red color from food coloring (the salmon pictured here has a dash), but some cooks use a mild chile powder or a healthy …Feb 24, 2024.