Tandoori chicken recipe, easy and delicious

The tandoori chicken is the father, or the mother of the prescriptions assumed as Hindus. It is the one that everyone asks for when they go to a Hindu gastronomy restaurant, and the type of dish that everyone can remember the name when you ask for a typical recipe from that side of the world.

Here comes the Surprise: the tandoori chicken or tanduri chicken, is not exactly from India. This recipe is super representative of Punjab gastronomy, and that region covers part of India and another part of Pakistan. There I leave you this piece of general gastronomic culture, useful for any appetizer or social dinner, discussion medium or even for a tweet. For the most curious, I leave here the Wikipedia link on the Punjab Gastronomy, and if they ask for it in the comments, I can also recommend a book;).

To end the gastronomic general culture session , I can not talk about the tandoori chicken without talking about the tandoor, or tandoori oven. This traditional and ancient oven is still widely used in Hindu and Pakistani restaurants. In principle, it uses charcoal for cooking, and preserves the flavors and juices of food in a particular way. It not only serves to cook meats, as in the case of this recipe, but also to make typical breads. For us, no way. Except for some very lucky few, we will stay with our daily ovens for this preparation.

Personally, this is the type of recipes that I love, because they are totally different from the flavors that we used to try often in home. Of course, for those who like me are lovers of spicy dishes, tandoori chicken is an absolute delight and almost a religious experience.

Tandoori chicken, easy recipe

To prepare this Tandoori chicken recipe There are two options: the ultra easy and the easy. The ultra easy consists of using the tandoori massala powder, which is a mixture of the base condiments for this preparation. The easy, but not so gift, is to make a mixture of spices at home. This option not only remains easy, but is the most suitable for most mortals, we do not have a place to buy tandoori masala powder around the corner. In addition, from the gastronomic point of view it is infinitely more interesting. For me, the experience of smelling each species, of tasting what we want, of developing creativity to invent other recipes and even of sneezing, is not something that occurs so often in Western cuisine. At least, not with spices that make us seriously leave our daily flavors.

All this said, here I go with the tandoori chicken, easy recipe. It is in the hands of you to try the ultra easy version if you get the tandoori massala to buy, and if you also believe that, this recipe will be richer.This recipe explains how to prepare your modern version, without tandoori oven, but with an authentic mixture of spices to achieve the authentic and unparalleled taste of this dish.To the first, it must be peeled and crushed, or otherwise cut into small pieces. To the second, it is necessary to peel and grate it, until completing the content of a spoonful. If you have how to grind the cloves, this is the time to do it. The same applies to cayenne pepper, if you are going to use it.

  • Now Let's go with the chicken. If you have skin, you have to remove it. As the idea is to absorb the tandoori sauce, we can pierce the meat a bit with the teeth of a fork, or discreetly with the knife. The idea is not to massacre the poor chicken. Also, remember that most of us also eat with our eyes.
  • We need a large container to accommodate the meat and marinade inside, which will stay there for a while. But calm down, it's still not the time to add anything, except for tandoori spices. That means: cumin, pepper powder, turmeric, cilantro, cinnamon, butternut, pepper, salt and cloves. It also adds cayenne pepper, for those who want a spicy recipe. We stir all those spices with a fork.
  • Now let's chop the lemon for the half, to squeeze and add that juice to the mix.
  • We also add ginger grated, crushed garlic, and mix everything again with the fork.
  • By Finally, pour the contents of the yogurt pots, and join all the seasoning that we had created, with this cream. The idea is that dust balls are not created and there is no risk of the species being poorly distributed.
  • After having the beautiful marinade ready, we are going to submerge the chicken, and make sure it is well smeared with tandoori sauce massala over absolutely all its surface.
  • We cover the container so that the meat does not dry out. To the refrigerator and to rest. Ideally, let him spend the night in that state. If you can not, leave it at least a couple of hours.
  • Preheat the oven at 210 degrees. Remove the chicken from your spa treatment in marinade, and place it in a baking dish, greased or covered with baking paper or aluminum. Cover again with all the pasta of the marinade. For that of ensuring the correct hydration of the meat, you can cover each piece with a splash of oil, or "brush it" with butter. Do not abuse.
  • Next act: taking the tandoori chicken to the oven. You have to leave it there for 40 minutes, on average. Each oven is a world, so it can be five minutes more or five minutes less. In the end, you have to obtain a golden chicken, in which the outside will be crispy and the interior juicy. What is very important, is to return to the plate about three times during cooking, to rotate the chicken and cover it again with sauce.
  • Done. To serve once. Bon appetit.

    Oh, and do not forget to take out the cloves if you left them full in the sauce.

    Tips for an unforgettable chicken tandoori

    • True grated ginger will give your recipe 8529582 times more taste than powdered ginger.This procedure intensifies the flavor of this type of ingredients.
    • For a more hydrated chicken, instead of leaving the chicken container uncovered during the whole baking, it can be covered with aluminum foil. If this is the case, I prefer to do it only during the second half of the cooking, so as not to lose the crispy touch that the outside of the meat takes, so characteristic of the original recipe tandoori chicken.

    If you like this type of dishes, I have other recommendations for you:

    • Mole poblano: a classic of Mexican cuisine, for lovers of spicy sauces and complex flavors.
    • Curried lentils: I already got excited about the idea of ​​curry, so I also have to recommend this dish.

    We also have many chicken recipes that we recommend, for example:

    • Homemade fried chicken, juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside.
    • Chicken curry: another must-have dish if you like Indian and Pakistani flavors.

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