Tandoori means, Pertaining to the Tandoor.
Tandoori Chicken is my absolute favorite Indian dish. There are as many varied recipes as there are cooks who make this delicious expression of Indian Cuisine. That being said, this is my recipe, it is not right or wrong, it simply is. You will certainly find that a little more of one ingredient or less of another or substitution and experimentation will taste best to you and yours.
The first introduction to Indian food I had was in Berlin. There was a small hole in the wall Indian place a couple of blocks away from the BASC near the center of the city. I was out for a walk one afternoon and caught the aroma…the love of Indian food began at that moment! Fortunately, the ‘old man’ spoke English, because at that time my German was very weak. He eventually showed me how to make the recipes that they served. I would moonlight in their kitchen once in a while in exchange for the lessons. Between the full blown kitchen at the BASC, the Indians, the Spanish/Portuguese place at the end of the block, the Turkish Donner Kebab joint around the corner, and the most excellent Szechuan Restaurant at the next U-Bahn stop, I was set for 3 years of good Foodie Stuff!
Lets get started:
As I have no access to a Tandoor, adjustments to the traditional recipe must be made.
My version comes from many attempts to make my Tandoori Chicken taste like what is made at Namsai Express. Namsai Express isn’t a ‘proper’ restaurant, it is a mobile kitchen, a food truck that still operates at the University of Pittsburgh. Every day when I had class from my Sophomore year as an undergraduate through Graduate School they were first choice for lunch. I still have them on speed dial because once in a while the Puti and I will do the two hour round trip to get a big mess of chicken tikka or tandoori, basmati rice, and some naan. The immigrant husband and wife team from the extreme Eastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh put in 16 hour days 6 days a week to run that business and all of their food is fantastic.
Here is my list of ingredients, yours will certainly vary:
12x Chicken Thighs (two ‘family packs’) + many spices listed below + 32 ounces of plain yogurt.
I prefer to use chicken thighs. All skin and fat must be removed to make tandoori. The skin on the thighs is easiest to remove. Legs can be tricky but with practice can be skinned quickly. Chicken breast is not used in this recipe. it is too dry and too large, and well, the thighs (and legs) just taste so much better in this dish. Breast is used in Tikka Masala which will be covered in a later post.
So now you have a pile of skinned thighs and a pile of fat and skin…boil the fat and skin in water with salt, pepper, a pinch of rosemary for an hour or so and you have chicken stock that can be used later or frozen in a freezer bag…or you can render out the fat and refrigerate it for later (schmaltz).
Take each thigh and make several cuts on each side so that the marinade will get down into the meat.
Now On To The Spices:
Indian food is defined by the use of many, many spices. the dishes can range from hot to mild but they are always the most flavorful of all cuisines. The base spices for Indian Cuisine are referred to as Garam Massala; Hetal and Anuja explain the basics of Garam Masala, feel free to deviate and experiment:
Garam Masala may also be purchased at your Indian Grocer or on line.
So from scratch:
Add the following ingredients to 32 OZ of plain yogurt in a very large non reactive bowl:
Garam Masala: 4 tablespoon ground cumin, 8 teaspoons ground coriander seeds, 4 teaspoon ground cardamom, 8 teaspoon ground red pepper, 8 teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon ground cloves.
And add 12 crushed garlic cloves, minced. 4 tablespoon paprika 4 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger, juice from 3 limes, 1 Tablespoon of ground chili powder, and 1/2-1 teaspoon of Dave’s Insanity Sauce or Blair’s Death Sauce to taste. The Hot sauce will be tempered by the yogurt and by marinade time. i use a little more than 1/2 and it yields a nice warm feeling, not a spicy burn at all. You can add more paprika or some orange/red food coloring so the yogurt gets a nice shade to it because your chicken will take on its color:
(Or, you can cheat and use this tandoori paste as a base, available at your local Indian Grocer or online and add to it as you like.)
Add the sliced chicken and mix it by hand so that all pieces are covered. Cover and place in fridge overnight, up to 24hrs. Remix the chicken halfway through. Prep Work is done, have a glass of wine.
How Do We Make It Taste Like It Was Cooked in a Tandoor?
That is the tough part. Tandoors can get up to 800-900 degrees and cook very quickly. Your oven wont do that. So, a 425-450 oven for 45-60 minutes will cook them. Tandoori is drier than regular chicken but not arid. Once the clear juices just stop running out of the chicken its done. yes, there are going to be some charred bits…and they are yummy.
On the grill its a little easier because you can impart some smoke and it gets very close to the results from a tandoor. I use regular lump charcoal for this with a hunk or two of hickory and a few chunks of a secret charcoal from Jamaica…NO, not that! 😎 Pimento Wood Charcoal from these guys. That charcoal made from the Allspice tree puts this recipe over the top. Get your coals going, pull the chicken out of the marinade and wipe off the yogurt with your fingers. a little will remain and that ends up being a good thing!
When grilling, there wont be as much flair up because the skin and the fat has been removed, however, always have a landing zone where the chicken can rest…lets cook:
These are just about done, they are resting and cooking just a bit longer off of the coals with the lid closed, when the juices just about stop running they are done. The crispy bits are really good too!
All Finished! Serve with Basmati Rice and some Naan (dont mind my industrial ‘official foodie’ pan…love that thing)
Spooky-Phoebedog waited so patiently for them to be done:
Granted, this is not the easiest recipe to make, it requires a lot of work and access to many spices, and more work. I have tried to take the guesswork and failure out of it as I have already failed a few times at this one! So, go get an Indian Cookbook (or go here) take the recipes to your local Indian Grocer and get busy exploring this most wonderful of the World’s Cuisines.
***here’s a chicken tikka recipe as well
Enjoy!
