Tandoori Chicken- Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking

When my mother passed away, I kept about a dozen of her cookbooks to add to my collection. It wasn't in an effort to gain her fabulous recipes (she wasn't really much of a cook, God rest her soul) but I love good cookbooks and figured I could add some fun things to my repertoire. Most of them are natural cookbooks, a few Jewish ones that I'll break into when I'm ready, and some ethnic ones. Some I've browsed through, some I haven't.


One of these cookbooks is Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking. It's an interesting book, written from a novice perspective, and features a lot of recipes with suggestions on what to serve them with. Up until a week ago I hadn't ever opened it, but knew it was there as I started looking to prepare an Indian dish. I've tried Indian food a few times and it's definitely growing on me. The chef at my hotel gave me some spices after an event that we did and I decided to try out something on my own. I know for a fact that Shawn has never touched Indian food, so I figured I'd try something simple and low key.

I took the book off the shelf, pondering what I could make... chicken tandoori was #1 on my list, but I was also considering a saagwala or maybe just doing some samosas to introduce him to the spices. I opened the front page of the book and was shocked to find a post it note stuck under the front cover. It was a recipe for Tandoori Chicken, written in my mothers shorthand, and it almost waiting for me to find it. Anyone who's lost someone close to them can understand the moments like this..... they tend to take your breath away. I burst into tears, not from sadness really, but just from the shock of finding what I wasn't expecting. I wiped the tears away and told Shawn that we were most definitely having Tandoori Chicken this week.

I bought some chicken breasts on sale and proceeded to make the recipe. The cookbook suggests using either chicken legs, breasts, or a combination of both. I went with breasts and ended up boning them as I tried to cut them into the small pieces required. Whoops! Didn't matter, really- I almost prefer it that way! I combined yogurt with onion, garlic, ginger, green chili, garam masala, salt & pepper in my blender. The recipe said I was to get a paste, but mine was more of a liquid. The recipe calls for you to strain the mixture through a sieve; pushing out the paste onto the chicken. Well, if anyone has never pureed onions in your blender/ processer; beware!! It will kill your eyes when you take off that lid. I had the door and the fan going as I strained that stuff and I still almost had to leave the room. I marinated the chicken overnight and then took it out the next day for preperation.

The original method for Tandoori Chicken requires a claypot, but the book's theory is that if you cook it at your oven's highest temperature you can maintain the same texture and quality. I haven't had the dish to really compare, but I followed the directions and the chicken was very moist and delicious! The flavor was a bit bland, though. The onions were the prominent flavor but the garam masala was extremely subtle. Interestingly enough, my mother's cooking was pretty bland so I guess it makes sense! I served it with brown rice and broccoli and it was a boring meal. I'd make it again, but will serve it with something a with a little more pop.

I used the remaining chicken for curry chicken salad the following day and it was off the hook. Check out my next blog for a little about that!

Tandoori- style Chicken- Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking
2lb chicken pieces, skinned (you may use legs, breasts, or a combination of two)
1tsp salt
1 juicy lemon
1 3/4 cup plain yoghurt
1/2 medium onion, peeled & quartered
1 clove garlic, peeled
a 3/4 inch cube of fresh ginger, peeled & quartered
1/2 fresh hot green chili, roughly sliced (or diced green chilis)
2tsp garam masala
Wedges of lime, optional

Cut each leg into 2 pieces and each breast into four pieces. Cut 2 long slits on each side of each part of the legs. The slits should never start at an edge and they should be deep enough to reach the bone. Cut similar slits on the meaty side of each breast piece.

Spread the chicken pieces out on one ore two large platters. Sprinkle 1/2 the salt and squeeze the juice from 3/4 of a lemon over them. Lightly rub the salt and lemon juice into the slits. Turn the chicken pieces over and do the same on the other side with the remaining salt & lemon juice. Set aside for 20 minutes

Combine the yoghurt, onion, garlic, ginger, green chili, and garam masala in the container of an electric blender or a food processor. Blend until you have a smooth paste. Empty the paste into a strainer st over a large ceramic or stainless steel bowl. Push the paste through.
Brush the chicken pieces on both sides with the food colouring* and then put them with any accumulated juices and any remaining food colouring, into the bowl with the marinade. Mix well, making sure that the marinade goes into the slits in the chicken. Cover and refrigerate for 6-24 hours (the longer the better).
Preheat oven to its maximum temperature. Take the chicken pieces out of the bowl, shaking off as much of the marinade as possible. Arrange them in a large shallow baking tray in a single layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until just done. You might test the chicken with a fork just to be sure. Serve hot, with lime wedges.

*The traditional orange colour of cooked tandoori chicken comes from food coloring. You may or may not want to use it. If you do, mix 3 Tbsp yellow and 1/2 to 1 1/2 Tbsp red liquid food colours to get a bright orange shade. If your red is very dark, use only 1/2 Tbsp of it.