Tandoori Chicken

See how to make tandoori chicken in the oven video on YouTube

See Blog: The Indian Tandoor, A Clay Oven 

Tandoori Chicken Recipe

(Recipe from New Indian Home Cooking)

An elegant dish from the state of Punjab, tantoori chicken (murgh) is one of the most-popular chicken dishes. It is made in a tandoor (clay oven) and hence the name. But it can also be baked in an oven or grilled on a barbecue. I make it in the oven all the time. It is a low fat dish, as the skin is removed prior to marinating the chicken. To learn more about tandoor and tandoori dishes, see blog The Indian Tandoor, A Clay Oven.

3 pounds chicken pieces (or 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken)

1 small onion (about 1 cup pieces)

1/2 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1 teaspoon fresh ginger, chopped

2 garlic cloves

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garam masala

1/4 teaspoon red food coloring (optional)

6 ea. lemon wedges

Preferably use chicken pieces of choice and skin the chicken, leave the bone-in. Or you can use skinless, boneless chicken.

1. Remove the skin and all visible fat from the chicken pieces. (I often have the butcher skin the chicken.) Cut 2–3 slits, 1-inch long and 1/2 inch deep, in each piece of chicken. Place in a casserole dish and set aside.
2. Cut onion into 4–6 pieces. In a blender jar put onion, tomato sauce, yogurt, ginger, garlic cloves, coriander powder, cayenne pepper, cumin seeds, salt, garam masala and red food coloring. Blend to a smooth paste.
3. Pour the tandoori paste on the chicken and turn pieces to thoroughly coat with spices. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator 4–24 hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove chicken pieces from the marinade, saving marinade. Arrange pieces in a broiler pan. Bake uncovered in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes. Turn pieces over and brush with remaining marinade. Bake for 10–15 minutes until chicken is tender.
5. Turn oven to broil. Turn pieces over once again and broil for 5 minutes to get a nice red color and .
6. Transfer to a serving platter. Serve with lemon wedges or squeeze lemon over the chicken before eating.

Makes 6 servings     Serving size: 4 oz each
Amount per serving: Calories: 182; Protein    24g; Fat: 8g (Sat Fat: 2g); Carbohydrate: 5g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sodium: 550 mg

(Recipe from New Indian Home Cooking by Madhu Gadia, M.S., R.D.; HP Books, 2000)