Tandoori Marinade
From Cooking With Fire and Smoke by Phillip Stephen Schulz
Tandoori Chicken
The meat is usually slashed so that the marinade can easily penetrate
and infuse the flavors throughout the chicken, plus the chicken is
traditionally cooked in a very hot tandoor. The slashes allows the chicken
to cook evenly and not end up raw in the middle.
Tandoori Chicken is a Punjabi dish dating back to the time of the Mughal Empire in Central and Southern Asia; it is still popular throughout that area. The chicken is marinated in a yogurt seasoned with garam masala, garlic, ginger, cumin, cayenne pepper, and other spices depending on the recipe.
Cayenne pepper, red chili powder or Kashmiri red chili powder is used to give it a fiery red hue. A higher amount of turmeric produces an orange color. In milder versions, both red and yellow food coloring are sometimes used to achieve bright colors, but turmeric powder is both mild and brightly colored, as is paprika, a sweet red pepper powder. It is traditionally cooked at high temperatures in an earthen oven (i.e. tandoor), but can also be prepared on a traditional grill.
In many Indian restaurants red Tandoori chicken is served with sliced fresh onions and wedges of fresh lemon or lime. India's version of barbecued chicken, Tandoori Chicken is one of the most popular delicacies stemming from the North of India and has survived years of perfection.
The mix of spices used in this recipe is called Tandoori Masala. It is an Indian spice blend consisting of a variety of spices; it will include cumin, coriander, and turmeric but can vary slightly from recipe to recipe, sometimes calling for the Indian seasoning blend garam masala. It is used to flavor many Indian dishes and provides a savory, aromatic, and lightly spicy flavor. This can be made in larger batches and stored for later use; substitute garlic powder and ground ginger for the fresh garlic and ginger.
When you visit an Indian restaurant the US and order tandoori chicken, you almost always you will get chicken drumsticks. But you can use any cut of chicken, even whole chickens. If using a cut-up chicken, you may want to cut the breasts into smaller pieces.
Difference Between Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Tikka, Chicken Tikka Marsala and Butter Chicken
FMM: I really like this recipe when the chicken is cooked out on the grill. I have tried it in the oven, and while good, it is much better when cooked on the grill.
Tandoori Marinade
This marinade is good on almost any kind of meat. Try it on lamb, poultry, pork chops and shrimp.
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup lime juice
1 cup yogurt
2 tsp. salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. fresh ginger, minced (or 1/2 tsp. dry ground ginger)
1 tsp. cumin seed, ground
1 tsp. coriander seed, ground
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. cayenne pepper [or Kashmiri red chili powder]
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
pinch ground cloves
[paprika, for color - SeriousEats uses achiote (annotto) for color]
[thinly sliced fresh onions, coriander leaves and wedges of fresh lemon or lime, for serving]
Beat all ingredients together. Use as both a marinade and basting sauce for grilled meats; chicken is popular in Indian restaurants. Let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, preferably 24 hours. Any leftover marinade may be heated to a boil and used as a side sauce.
Makes a little over 1 1/2 cups marinade - enough for 3 - 4 pounds of chicken. I believe Brian and I used this amount on a whole chicken once.
Serve the grilled meats with plain Raita or Cucumber Raita (raita is a yogurt-based condiment), Curry Rice or Mango Rice, grilled vegetables and warm Chapati (Indian flat bread). Another option, good in the summer, is Indian Style Potato Salad with Turmeric and Green Peas.
