Paleo Dinner Recipes:
Authentic Chicken Tikka
PREP/COOK TIME: 35 minutes (plus 1 hour marinating)
Chicken tikka is a well-known Indian dish. Sometimes it is served in a sauce, in which case the recipe would be chicken tikka masala. Here we are omitting the sauce and simply flavoring the chicken with Indian seasonings before marinating it and then baking it.
The chicken pieces are marinated in yogurt, tandoori powder (you can get this from an Asian or halal grocery store), cilantro, garlic and lemon for an hour. You can let the chicken marinate for longer if you wish – up to 12 hours.
It is then baked in the oven until the chicken is no longer pink inside, and then you can team it with a simple green salad or any other side dishes you want to make. Lemon goes very well with the tandoori flavor so offer lemon slices or wedges on the side. If you prefer, you can dice the chicken and thread the pieces on to skewers before cooking them. You can also chargrill the chicken instead of baking, for a nice, smoky flavor. This recipe serves 4 people.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons natural yogurt
3 teaspoon tandoori powder
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 minced garlic clove
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 lb chicken breast halves
Optional Garnishes:
Lemon slices or wedges
Chopped fresh tomato
Cucumber slices
Chives or green onions
Green salad
Method:
Mix the yogurt with the tandoori power, cilantro, garlic and lemon juice in a non-metallic bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat well. Let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange the chicken on a greased baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Flip the chicken over and give it another 15 minutes in the oven.
Check to see whether an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of one of the chicken pieces is at least 165 degrees F. If not, give it another 5 minutes and check again.
Slice each chicken breast half and arrange the pieces like in the photo. Serve right away, with any of the optional garnishes you like.
- 3 tablespoons natural yoghurt
- 3 teaspoon tandoori powder
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 lb chicken breast halves
- Mix the yogurt with the tandoori power, cilantro, garlic and lemon juice in a non-metallic bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat well. Let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange the chicken on a greased baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Flip the chicken over and give it another 15 minutes in the oven.
- Check to see whether an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of one of the chicken pieces is at least 165 degrees F. If not, give it another 5 minutes and check again.
- Slice each chicken breast half and arrange the pieces like in the photo. Serve right away, with any of the optional garnishes you like.
