Top-Rated Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe

When your brother is a medical student, and one of his study partners is East Indian (and also happens to be a great cook), you get introduced to a lot of amazing Indian recipes. This is one of them. I based it on the recipe from Allrecipes.com (with 1829 four and a half star reviews!), only I added way more yogurt sauce, poached the chicken instead of grilling it, etc. :)

Here is a picture from the website:

[courtesy of Allrecipes.com]

Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups yogurt
3 tbsp lemon juice
4 tsp ground cumin (for the marinade)
2 tsp cinnamon
3-4 tsp cayenne pepper, depending on how fiery you like it
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
salt, to taste
3 very large boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tbsp butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped green onions

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 4 tsp cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 2 tsp salt. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and add to the yogurt mixture. If you have time, refrigerate this for one hour to marinate. If, like I was, you're in a hurry to get dinner on the table, just skip the marinating step and go right on to cooking the chicken. :)

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large pot, then add the chicken-yogurt mixture. Cook on medium-low heat until the chicken is almost fully cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove chicken-yogurt mixture from the pot and set aside while you cook the rest of the sauce - or just use a new pot, if you don't mind washing an extra dish!

Melt the butter in the pot, then add the garlic and jalapeno and saute for 1 minute. Add the rest of the cumin (2 tsp), paprika, tomato sauce, and cream. Simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Add the chicken and simmer for another few minutes, or until the chicken is fully cooked. Add the cilantro and green onions, and serve with lots of rice to soak up the tasty sauce!