What is Chicken Tikka Masala? A delicious Indian inspired dish that actually originated in England. Warm curry spices are infused into a creamy tomato sauce then sauteed chicken is added to create a meal that’s loaded with flavor!
I love that the tables have turned and the child that I once taught is now teaching me new things! My son inherited our family’s love for cooking. The reason he loves to cook so much is really because he loves to eat so much! Even when he was little I don’t think he ever ordered off of the “Children’s Menu”. He would just give me a look like, “You want me to eat a hot dog and fries when there’s lobster, lake trout, filet mignon and sushi on the menu!” Ha! Now that he’s grown he always looks for new cuisines to try and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty….or every pot in my kitchen! Luckily this Chicken Tikka Masala only required one pan though!
I had never eaten Indian cuisine before he made this dish for me. I had no idea what I was missing! This stuff is delicious! This was the second time in a week that he made it. First he tried it out on his girlfriend and I and when we gave it rave reviews he decided to double the recipe and invite my brother and Paul to join us. Everyone was going in for second and thirds! I seriously can’t wait for him to make it again!
If you’ve never cooked Indian cuisine before you’re probably going to need to buy a few spices. I’m pretty sure that every spice on the shelf of your market is in this dish! Lucky for me I did already have quite a few of them.
The ingredients in the recipe are really quite healthy. Maybe not super low calorie but these days I’m more concerned with eating a wide variety of healthy foods and good fats. Everything that this dish has.
The two ingredients in this dish that have a higher fat content are ghee (which is clarified butter) and coconut milk. Both of which are healthy fats. Sometimes it’s actually better to eat full fat foods that contain healthy fats like full fat dairy products. I’m not an expert but that’s what many studies are leaning towards these days. The idea is to consume them in moderation. The other thing that I love about the ghee is that even though it’s butter it actually contains only trace amounts of lactose and milk proteins. They are almost non existent meaning that it’s tolerated by people with dairy sensitivity better. I’m looking forward to seeing how my lactose intolerant daughter fairs with it because sometimes butter just taste better.
I can’t wait to see what other tasty lessons I’ll learn from my son if it means I get to eat delicious nutritious food like this!
Chicken Tikka Masala
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds Boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 Tablespoon Vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 2 teaspoons Garam masala
- 2 teaspoons Ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon Ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon Ground turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon Ground cardamom
- 2 Tablespoons Clarified butter, (Ghee) ,or more as needed
- 1 Large Vidalia onion ,chopped
- 1/4 Cup Tomato paste
- 4 Cloves Garlic ,finely grated
- 1 Tablespoon Finely grated ginger
- 1 Cup Crushed tomatoes
- 1 ,13 ounce can Coconut milk
- 1/2 Cup Chicken broth
- 2 Tablespoons Chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 teaspoon Crushed red pepper flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place chicken in a bowl and drizzle with vegetable oil; toss to coat.
- In a small bowl whisk salt, garam masala, ground cumin, ground coriander, smoked paprika, ground turmeric, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and cardamom together.
- Season chicken with spice mixture and turn to coat evenly.
- Melt clarified butter in a large, heavy skillet over high heat. Cook chicken thighs in hot butter until browned on all sides, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate. When cool enough to handle, cut chicken into bite-size pieces.
- Reduce heat under the skillet to medium-high. Stir onion into skillet; sautee until onion softens and turns translucent, 5 to 6 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir. Sautee until paste caramelizes, about 5 minutes. Stir garlic and ginger into tomato-onion mixture and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Pour the crushed tomatoes into the skillet and bring to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off of the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon. Pour in coconut milk and chicken broth; bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium low, and cook, stirring occasionally, until flavors blend and sauce is slightly reduced, about 15 minutes.
- Stir chicken, any accumulated juices from the chicken, cilantro, and crushed red pepper flakes into tomato mixture; bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until chicken is cooked through and tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.
- Serve over rice.
Nutrition
Recipe adapted from All recipes
There’s only one other thing that is a must when you serve this Chicken Tikka Masala. Homemade Naan Bread to sop up the delicious creamy curry tomato sauce! That recipe will be on the blog tomorrow!
Looking for more ethnic cuisine? Check out some of the recipes from my {Celebrating Our Heritage Series}! Here are a few below. Just click on the picture for the recipe.
This looks delicious! I know what you mean about your children teaching you – My son is the same way – I think the love of food travels through our blood.
I agree Anne. The love of food has definitely traveled through many generations in our family. It’s the perfect area to find common ground when you’re looking for a way to relate with your kids.