Similar to butter chicken, the chicken tikka masala is the most popular recipe in most Indian restaurants. My chicken tikka is a quick and easy version in just 20 minutes. This spiced tender pieces of chicken cooked in a curry sauce is surprisingly simple and easy to make.
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To most of my non-Indian friends, Indian food means chicken tikka, tandoori chicken, biryani and those exotic Indian dishes. Right? My friends honestly believe these are so difficult to make.
The truth is Indian cooking is easy yet time-consuming. We Indians love food so much that we spend a lot of time fussing over it. Back in the day moms would stay at home and make elaborate meals for the rest of the family to come home to. Today we do not have that luxury of time. So we make the same dishes just using the fast forward or quick methods.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Chicken - You know I'm not a big fan of chicken breast so I always use thighs but chicken breast works just as well. Just don't cook it too long. The chicken breast will usually cook in about 5 to 6 minutes. Overcooking chicken breast will make it dry and tough.
- Plain Yogurt - It's always best to use regular whole milk yogurt (about 3% works). Do not use skimmed or low fat these just create too much gravy and do not give that yogurt texture. Also, do not use sweetened yogurt! Trust me!
- Sour Cream - if you don't want to use sour cream you can use more yogurt. But just taste it first; if the yogurt is too sour reduce the lemon juice in the recipe.
- Spice mix - For those of you that have Indian spices, I encourage you to use these. Alternatively, you can use curry powder.
Curry powder is a good blend of these spices that work great in any simple Indian dish. - Fenugreek Powder - This is an Indian Spice that usually won't be in curry powder but is quite authentic to Chicken Tikka Masala. Again it can be omitted! The dish will still be very tasty just with that little unique flavor missing. Living abroad for so long I have had difficulty finding this as well but never stopped me from making Chicken Tikka.
Can you see how soft and tender that is? Just melts in the mouth.
Step by step instructions
- Cut chicken pieces into small bite-size pieces
- Season with salt and pepper.
Prepare marinade
- In a glass or ceramic bowl prepare marinade (do not use metal).
- Add the yogurt, all the dry spices including salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken pieces and coat well.
- Lastly, add the lemon juice and oil
- If using food color add now (note above I have not used any food color).
- Again mix well to coat.
Pan cooking method
- Heat a saute pan on medium-high heat.
- Add the chicken piece with all the marinade.
- Toss and stir the pieces around while keeping the heat on medium to high.
- The chicken will release the juices and the high heat will reduce it immediately giving the yogurt that smoked flavor.
- Continue to cook on medium - stirring often until chicken is cooked (6 to 10 minutes)
- Lastly, add the tomato paste and sour cream - Cook for a minute and turn the heat off.
- Taste and adjust seasoning and consistency. If necessary add more water to make gravy (I served these with chapati so I made less gravy)
- Sprinkle with cilantro leaves if desired.
Frequently asked questions
This chicken tikka recipe will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze it for up to a month.
Absolutely, this recipe is very simple and easy and can be multiplied a few times if you need to serve more people. Just change the number of servings in the recipe card below and it should calculate the recipe for you.
Chicken tikka is made with chicken but the same recipe can be used with beef or lamb with a few variations. Check out my recipe for lamb masala, beef curry.
Today, I have served it with steamed rice. Sometimes, I serve it with our family coconut turmeric rice. Having said that, Indian chapati, roti or naan are perfect with this as well.
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Printable Recipe
Quick Chicken Tikka Masala in 20 mins
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Ingredients
- 1 lb (450 g) Boneless chicken thigh or breast
- ½ cup (120 ml) Plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp Ginger grated
- 1 tbsp Garlic paste minced
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
- 2 tbsp Cooking oil
- 1 tbsp Tomato paste do not use for skewers
- 2 tbsp Sour cream do not use for skewers
- ⅛ tsp Red food color optional
Ground spices
- 1 tsp Chily powder or cayenne
- ¼ tsp Turmeric powder
- ¼ tsp Garam masala
- 1 tsp Coriander powder
- 1 tsp Cumin powder
- ½ tsp Pepper powder
- ½ tsp Dry fenugreek / kasoori methi
- ½ tsp Salt
Instructions
- Cut chicken pieces into small bite-size pieces
- Season with salt and pepper.
Prepare Marinade
- In a glass or ceramic bowl prepare marinade (do not use metal).
- Add the yogurt, all the dry spices including salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken pieces and coat well.
- Lastly, add the lemon juice and oil
- If using food color add now (note above I have not used any food color).
- Again mix well to coat.
Pan Cooking Method
- Heat a saute pan on medium-high heat.
- Add the chicken piece with all the marinade.
- Toss and stir the pieces around while keeping the heat on medium to high.
- The chicken will release the juices and the high heat will reduce it immediately giving the yogurt that smoked flavor.
- Continue to cook on medium - stirring often until chicken is cooked (6 to 10 minutes)
- Lastly, add the tomato paste and sour cream - Cook for a minute and turn the heat off.Â
- Taste and adjust seasoning and consistency. If necessary add more water to make gravy (I served these with chapati so I made less gravy)
- Sprinkle with cilantro leaves if desired.
Recipe Notes
Skewer Cooking Method
- Alternatively, you can skewer the chicken pieces over soaked bamboo or satay sticks.
- Grill them on high for 5 to 8 minutes until cooked with beautifully charred marks.
What can you do with leftover chicken tikka masala?
Indian chicken tikka is great to have on hand for many things, so leftovers are always a great thing to have on hand.- Chicken Wraps - Make quick great snack for kids' school meals. You can buy or make tortilla or Indian chapati.
- or Chicken tikka sandwiches - Use them as the base for sandwiches of course - add some sliced cucumbers and tomatoes.
- Chicken tikka noodles - My kids love this chicken served over hot noodles.Â
- or Chicken tikka pasta - Do the same with your kids favorite pastaÂ
- chicken pizza - chicken tikka is a treat over delicios homemade pizza.Â
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Cara Chrétien
Hello! This looks so delicious and I can’t wait to try it. Can plain whole milk Greek Yogurt be used?
Veena Azmanov
Yes, Cara. Whole milk Greek yogurt works too
Cara Chrétien
Excellent! We can’t to try this!
Molly Kumar
Tikka Masala is a complete comfortfood for me and this is so yummmm!!! I love how easy the recipe is.
Veena Azmanov
I agree Molly, absolute comfort food.