I think chicken tikka masala is is a fantastic British (probably) culinary invention. You’ve all heard this story of how it was invented, right? A customer in a restaurant complained that his chicken tikka dish was too dry, so the chef whipped up a tomato and cream based sauce to go with it. I’m not sure how true the story is and, with several restaurants claiming to be the birthplace of the dish, I don’t think we’ll ever know what really happened.
Chicken tikka masala is one of Goon’s comfort foods, which is why I ended up making it. On the evening after the cheese fiasco, Goon was feeling a little ill. He put it down to a restuarant he visited the previous night, although I suspect that inhaling gorgonzola fumes on the tube for an hour probably didn’t help all that much. 
It is the sort of meal where I already have most of the ingredients I needed. All I had to do, was pop to the Tesco metro and pick up some chicken and some okra to make a side dish.
As well as being delicious, this curry is easy to make. The chicken is marinated in a mix of greek yoghurt and spices including cumin, fenugreek, caraway and turmeric , which gives it a golden colour. I think it is a good idea to add a little lemon as this seems to keep the chicken moist as it cooks. Full recipe to follow soon! The chicken is left in the marinade for a while (I leave it for at least three hours) and then baked in the oven until it is cooked through.
The sauce is made from tomato, cream, cumin, garam masala, ground coriander seed and a cashew paste made by blending the nuts with cream. I usually blend all the sauce ingredients together to get a totally smooth sauce.
See, how easy is that? The cooked chicken is just stirred into the sauce and then it is ready to be served with a rice or naan. Goon’s choice on this occasion was a saffron pilau. I fried finely diced onion until it was soft with some cardamoms and cloves, then I stirred in basmati rice, fried for a minute or so, then added a pinch of saffron dissoved in boiling water plus enough water to cook the rice.
It really is a nice comforting meal. This curry is rich and full of flavour but not at all hot. I served it garnished with coriander leaves and had some spicy okra to go with it.
I think chicken tikka masala is is a fantastic British (probably) culinary invention. You’ve all heard this story of how it was invented, right? A customer in a restaurant complained that his chicken tikka dish was too dry, so the chef whipped up a tomato and cream based sauce to go with it. I’m not sure how true the story is and, with several restaurants claiming to be the birthplace of the dish, I don’t think we’ll ever know what really happened.
Chicken tikka masala is one of Goon’s comfort foods, which is why I ended up making it. On the evening after the cheese fiasco, Goon was feeling a little ill. He put it down to a restuarant he visited the previous night, although I suspect that inhaling gorgonzola fumes on the tube for an hour probably didn’t help all that much.
It is the sort of meal where I already have most of the ingredients I needed. All I had to do, was pop to the Tesco metro and pick up some chicken and some okra to make a side dish.
As well as being delicious, this curry is easy to make. The chicken is marinated in a mix of greek yoghurt and spices including cumin, fenugreek, caraway and turmeric , which gives it a golden colour. I think it is a good idea to add a little lemon as this seems to keep the chicken moist as it cooks. Full recipe to follow soon! The chicken is left in the marinade for a while (I leave it for at least three hours) and then baked in the oven until it is cooked through.
The sauce is made from tomato, cream, cumin, garam masala, ground coriander seed and a cashew paste made by blending the nuts with cream. I usually blend all the sauce ingredients together to get a totally smooth sauce.
See, how easy is that? The cooked chicken is just stirred into the sauce and then it is ready to be served with a rice or naan. Goon’s choice on this occasion was a saffron pilau. I fried finely diced onion until it was soft with some cardamoms and cloves, then I stirred in basmati rice, fried for a minute or so, then added a pinch of saffron dissoved in boiling water plus enough water to cook the rice.
It really is a nice comforting meal. This curry is rich and full of flavour but not at all hot. I served it garnished with coriander leaves and had some spicy okra to go with it.
A recipe for the okra as well please? I’ve never cooked with okra but i did have a great spicy okra, aubergine and green bean dish once..
Comment by Schmoofaloof — February 2, 2007 @ 1:04 pm
Sure, I’ll get that done at some point tomorrow.
Comment by ros — February 2, 2007 @ 2:42 pm
Mmmm, I love chicken tikka masala. As you say, not having grown up in Britain, it was totalyl foreign to me when I got here. Up to that point, the spiciest thing I’d eat was korma! Tikka masala provided me with a stepping stone to curries with more flavour and made me realise that spice can also be a synonym for “tasty” - not only “pain”! I make a divine balti chicken curry that I must blog sometime…
Comment by Jeanne — February 2, 2007 @ 7:11 pm
THANKS sooooo much for the REAL British Chicken Tikka Masala recipe! We live in Sydney and miss the creamy, nutty style C.T.M. — have got hubby on the case to make it tomorrow night. YUUUUUUUUUM!
Comment by Brit in Aus — June 20, 2009 @ 10:32 am