Serious Eats Chicken Tikka Masala - Maybe The Best

Total Time: 5 hrs Preparation Time: 4 hrs 10 mins Cook Time: 50 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 5 lbs bone-in chicken pieces, skin removed (breasts, legs or a mix)
• 3 tablespoons toasted ground cumin (whole seed toasted, then ground to yield 3 tbsp.)
• 3 tablespoons toasted paprika
• 2 tablespoons toasted ground coriander (whole seed toasted, then ground to yield 2 tbsp.)
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or 1 teaspoon indian red chili powder
• 8 garlic cloves, grated on the medium holes of a box grater
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated on the medium holes of a box grater (about 2 inches of gingerroot)
• 2 cups yogurt
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (3-4 lemons)
• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 4 tablespoons ghee or 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 4 tablespoons garlic, grated (or crushed)
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated (about 2 inches fresh gingerroot, peeled and grated)
• 28 ounces whole canned tomatoes, roughly mashed
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaf, and tender stems roughly chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (1-2 lemons)
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
• 3 cups cooked rice (or as desired) (optional)
• 6 pieces grilled naan bread (optional)

Recipe

• 1 place the chicken pieces on a cutting board with flesh-side up. score deeply at 1-inch intervals with a sharp knife. pat dry and place in a large rimmed non-reactive baking dish.
• 2 marinade:.
• 3 combine cumin, paprika, coriander, turmeric and cayenne in a small bowl and mix well. set aside 3 tablespoons of spice mixture (for step 10).
• 4 combine remaining 6 tablespoons of spice mixture, 8 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons ginger, yogurt, 1/2 cup lemon juice and 1/4 cup salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine (or process all in food processor).
• 5 pour marinade all over chicken pieces, using hands to coat every surface. cover loosely and refrigerate. refrigerate and allow to marinate for at least 4 hours and up to 8 hours, turning occasionally.
• 6 sauce:.
• 7 meanwhile, heat ghee or butter in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat until melted and foaming subsides.
• 8 in clean food processor, pulse garlic to yield 4 tablespoons (or crush in a garlic press). remove excess of garlic from food processor and add about 2 inches fresh gingerroot cut in small chunks, and pulse until finely grated.
• 9 add onions and garlic-ginger mix to the dutch oven. cook, stirring frequently, until dark and beginning to char in spots, about 10 minutes.
• 10 add reserved spice mixture from step 3. cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• 11 add tomatoes and 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan with a spoon.
• 12 simmer sauce for 15 minutes, then puree using a hand blender or by transferring to a tabletop blender in batches. (if you use a vitamix, you will not need to allow the sauce to cool off first.)
• 13 stir in cream and remaining 1/4 cup lemon juice. season to taste with salt, then set aside until chicken is cooked.
• 14 to cook on the grill:.
• 15 light 1 chimney full of charcoal. when all of the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread the coals evenly over half of a coal grate.
• 16 set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes.
• 17 clean and oil the grilling grate. (i recommend a grillgrate.).
• 18 wipe excess marinade off chicken and place over hot side of grill, flesh-side down.
• 19 grill without moving until well charred, 5-7 minutes.
• 20 flip chicken and cook until second side is charred, 4-5 minutes. (chicken will not be completely cooked through, which is okay). transfer to a cutting board and allow to rest 10 minutes.
• 21 to cook under the broiler:.
• 22 line a broiler pan with heavy duty aluminum foil and preheat the broiler to high with the rack set 6 inches below broiler element.
• 23 wipe excess marinade off chicken and place on foil-lined pan, flesh side up. broil until charred an blackened on surface, about 8 minutes (but if you have a professional oven broiler, it may take much less time). (chicken will not be completely cooked through, which is okay.) transfer to a cutting board and allow to rest 10 minutes.
• 24 finale:.
• 25 remove chicken from bone using a sharp knife and cut into rough bite-sized chunks.
• 26 transfer chicken chunks to pot of sauce.
• 27 bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until chicken is just cooked through, about 10 minutes.
• 28 sprinkle with 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves.
• 29 serve immediately with rice or grilled naan.