Chicken Tikka Masala

I am relatively new to Indian food, my family weren't exactly into exotic food growing up. I have only been eating it for a few years, but I absolutely love it. After a trip to an Indian restaurant, and the attached Indian grocery store, I have been attempting to cook Indian food over the last few months. I think a lot of people are intimidated by the ingredients and avoid cooking Indian food, I know I was. However, if you can find this stuff, it is really easy to cook a lot of great Indian dishes.

This is a Jamie Oliver recipe. I realize he isn't Indian, but I love his recipes and I'll take his advice on most things. Also, because of its popularity, chicken tikka masala is thought by many to be the true national dish of England, so I'll take his word for it.

Chicken Tikka Masala

adapted from Jamie Oliver

For marinade:

1 red chili, deseeded

1 clove of garlic, peeled

A thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled

1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

A pinch of paprika

1/2 Tablespoon of garam masala

A teaspoon of tomato puree

The stems from 3 cilantro sprigs, leaves reserved

2 chicken breasts, cut into large cubes

Mix up the chili, garlic, ginger and oil in a food processor. Then add the paprika, garam masala, tomato puree and coriander stalks and process to a smooth paste. Place the chicken cubes into a bowl, add the paste and mix it all up. Marinate for a few hours, or overnight if possible.

To finish it:

1 medium onion, sliced

1 red pepper, sliced

A pinch of ground cinnamon

A pinch of ground coriander

A pinch of turmeric

Half a 28 oz. can of San Marzano tomatoes, chopped (or a 14 oz. one if they make them)

100 ml of plain yogurt

100 ml of heavy cream

Fry the onion, pepper and spices over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, yogurt and chicken pieces and cook for another 15 minutes, or until cooked through. Just before serving, stir in the cream and minced coriander leaves.

I used a jalapeno when I made this, and only put in half (because of the original recipe), because that's about all I can get around here. There was no heat at all. Chicken tikka masala shouldn't be too spicy, but I would definitely use the whole chili.

I served this over some steamed white rice. It would be great with some homemade naan, but that's for another time.