Chicken Tikka Masala

My favorite Indian dish is Chicken Tikka Masala. From my research, I understand that it's also Britain's favorite curry dish, so much so that the British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook has hailed chicken tikka masala "Britain's true national dish".

There's no "official" recipe for this dish, there's so much variation that the name of this dish has become a kind of "catch-all" for any curry that merely contains chicken. Some characteristics I found common are:

• the dish contains chicken, usually dark meat marinade
  
• the chicken is served with some a reddish/orange colored curry
• curry is usually somewhat sweet
  

Typically I found that chicken tikka masala works best if the curry is made up of some combination of the following ingredients:

• yogurt/creme/milk
• tomatoes
• brown sugar
• thickening agent
• lemon juice
• random curry mix that contains some tumeric (most do)
  

I usually eat my curry with rice. Basmanti rice is wonderful if you can get it, I don't always have some around. Thai Jasmine rice works well too. I aim for rice that separates instead of holds all together (I feel that a lot of people over hydrate their rice). I aim for a 1-1 ratio of rice-to-water, with maybe just an extra dash of water. Use a rice cooker or cook it over the stovetop at low-low heat (2 at most otherwise it will stick). I do this first since rice is the long pull in terms of cooking time, but once you start it you can forget about it until the end.

Next, I take a leg and thigh of a chicken, take a de-boning knife with a pinch grip and remove the skin, de-bone it, and cut off all the fat. I also score the chicken lightly so that the marinade will have an easier time penetrating the meat. Then I wash the chicken under the sink under lukewarm water for about 10-15 seconds to take the chill off the chicken, removing any non-fragrant smells, and to make the chicken a little more willing to absorb spices and the marinade. I drain the chicken of any excess water, then place it in a bowl. I pour about one tablespoon of lemon juice, followed by some curry powder, add some diced garlic and mix it around. I also find if you have some yogurt it doesn't hurt to throw a spoonful of it in as well. Let this sit on the counter while you do the other stuff.

Now do some prep work, this usually consist of chopping up some garlic, blending up some tomatoes to make a marinara (you can also use tomato paste or canned sauce for the less DIY folks), and dicing some carrots and green onion for garnishing later on.

In a small sauce pan 2-3 quart size, take a whallop (about 2 tablespoons) of some refrigerated white sauce (I always keep some of this around, it's a great thickening agent for sauces). I wait for it to heat up (heat at medium 3-4) and add some milk or coconut milk. Coconut milk will turn the sauce from average to godly. If you have any yogurt, a spoonful now doesn't hurt either. Then I add in the tomato marinara, you should have made about a cup of it. The color should of the sauce should turn lightly pink/reddish at this point. Work on the texture adding milk or water to thin it if necessary. If the sauce is too thin, don't worry, while on the stove it will reduce.

Next add the spices and garlic and stir. The color should be a light orange. The tumeric is yellow and will make the pink/reddish sauce turn orange. Darken the sauce by throwing in a tablespoon of brown sugar, followed by a bit of balsamic vinegar. That will make the sauce a dark rich orange color. I usually then add some butter or sesame oil for flavoring and use salt to adjust the seasoning. If your sauce is too watery, leave the heat on to reduce its volume, otherwise turn off the heat.

Now its time for the chicken. Drain out any water/lemon juice from the chicken. While making the sauce it's probably a good idea to preheat your frying pan to save on time. At this point, put some butter or oil into the skillet. If using butter, it should bubble and start to brown. Take the piece of chicken and lay it on the skillet. Wait for about 4 minutes before flipping it over. I don't use non-stick cookwear but it doesn't stick if you wait and the chicken will brown beautifully. I usually judge the readiness of the chicken by nudging it on the sides, but don't even bother doing this before 3 minutes, it isn't ready yet and any premature nudging leads to food stuck on pans or a bad browning of the meat. If you're cooking it for more than 5 minutes on the first side, you're also probably doing something wrong either didn't drain out any excess liquid or didn't preheat the skillet like I advised.

After the chicken is cooked, you may cut it into strips (sometimes I do this before throwing the chicken in the skillet). Put the chicken into a small dish and pour the curry over it. I usually strain the curry through a mash to remove the garlic. Then I add chopped parsley, carrots, and/or green onions for garnish.

I usually then mix the rice with some carrots and green onions and serve :) Yummy!