Britain's Favorite Chicken Tikka Masala
Ingredients
Marinade
- 750g boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into large bite-sized pieces
- 75g Greek yogurt
- 2 tsp chopped garlic
- 2 tsp chopped ginger
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp dried methi leaves
- 1 tsp salt
Curry
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 50g butter
- 1 large chopped onion
- 1 tbsp chopped garlic
- 1 tbsp chopped ginger
- 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 4 green cardamom pods
- 400g tin tomatoes
- 2 tbsp coconut flour (sub ground almonds and knob of coconut cream)
- 275ml chicken stock
- 125ml double cream
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 wedge lemon and a drizzle of cream to serve
Preparation
Put the marinade ingredients into a mixing bowl, mix well then stir in the chicken until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for 6 or more hours.
Put the chicken onto a grill pan and grill on high for 5 minutes each side. Set aside to cool.
Make the sauce by splitting the cardamom pods and adding the seeds to a large pan with the oil and butter on medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion, ginger, garlic and a pinch of salt and fry, stirring regularly until the onion is translucent and the edges are turning golden brown.
Stir in the ground spices and cook for 2 minutes, stirring continuously.
Stir in the tinned tomatoes, cover loosely and let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the coconut flour and cook for another few minutes until you can see the fat separating at the edges of the pan.
Remove the pan from the heat, add the cream and blend the contents with a stick blender until smooth.
Place back on the heat and stir in the stock, sugar and another pinch of salt, cover loosely and bring back up to a medium simmer for approximately 12 minutes until any bitterness of the tomatoes has cooked off.
Stir in the chicken, cover loosely and simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check the seasoning and finish with a drizzle of cream and squeeze of lemon.
