How To Make Tandoori Chicken Tikka

Sharing is caring!

Chicken tikka can be used in so many different recipes!

From delicious curry house style curries to amazing tandoori starters, proper chicken tikka is a good one to have in your recipe library.

In this recipe, you will learn everything you need to know about making tandoori chicken.

The recipes out there might be different but the techniques need for achieving excellent tandoori are all here. You might also like to try other chicken tikka recipes as I have a lot of them! Don’t forget the naans and chapatis!

You will get great results with this tried and tested tandoori chicken tikka recipe!

I’m always looking for new and amazing ways to cook tandoori chicken tikka. There are a lot of recipe out there and this one is a good all-rounder!

This is one I came across one day by chance.

I was walking around The World Curry Festival in 2012, checking out the food stalls and noticed a very long queue in front of Hasan’s stall.

That day they must have served tons of chicken tikka to hungry visitors!

I ordered mine served on fresh naans.

Those succulent pieces of chicken were to die for. I had to get the recipe! And I did.

Making restaurant quality tandoori chicken tikka is easy.

It’s not at all difficult to make tandoori chicken tikka at home. You don’t even need a tandoor.

Yes, it is nice to go out to dinner and get spoilt with gorgeous Indian food but making a tandoori chicken tikka recipe like this at home is what cooking for me is all about.

Which chicken to use…

In this tandoori chicken tikka recipe, I used chicken breasts which are what you will usually find chicken tikka prepared with at restaurants.

Personally, I think it is much better with thigh meat. It’s not as pretty but the thigh chicken is much juicier.

There is a problem with thigh however. Many people falsely believe that it is undercooked. The meat is naturally red and juicy.

For this reason, whenever I’m serving a crowd, I use the breast which is white and looks amazing charred on the exterior.

What do you serve with chicken tikka?

Whether you are using your tikka in a curry, eating it on its own or wrapping it up in a naan or chapati, the following are alway popular with a good chicken tikka.

You might like to prepare a good tarka dal, chana dal or the slowly cooked and amazing dal makhani.

Personally, I love my chicken tikka with a good chutney or two such as mint chutney, coriander chutney, mint and coriander chutney, tamarind chutney and onion chutney. All of these are also good  slathered over a poppadom. So if you’re looking to make your chicken tikka into a feast, these chutneys will take your feast up a few notches!

How do you add chicken tikka to a curry?

British Indian restaurant (BIR) curries such as chicken madras and chicken tikka masala require pre-cooked meat and grilled chicken tikka is the best option.

You can simply whip up a curry house style curry sauce, which you will find here and stir it in. Curry house style curries require a base sauce. If time is an issue, you might like to have a look at my new no-base curry house curry recipes. Your chicken tikka can be added to any of those curries even if not called for in the recipe.

Tandoori chicken tikka is also a healthy method of cooking chicken.

When at home I like to make chicken tikka for the family. The kids love it.

All of the chicken skin is removed which makes tandoori chicken tikka and other tandoori chicken recipes, light.

There’s nothing like firing up the tandoor oven and cooking the tikka until they’re just cooked through and lightly charred on the outside.

This recipe could also be made on a barbecue or even in a hot oven. I actually prefer the barbecued method as it is something I can do outside.

How to serve tandoori chicken.

The meat can be served on its own or used in curries.

When serving on its own, I like to drizzle it with melted ghee or butter just before serving. This really takes tandoori chicken tikka and other tandoori meats and veggies up a notch or two.

Working ahead…

You should plan to marinate your chicken tikka a good couple of days before cooking for optimum flavour.

It really does make a big difference.

That said, I teach this same recipe in my cooking classes where a long marination time just isn’t possible.

Marinating meats has two advantages. The first is flavour and the marinade also helps tenderise the meat.

Purchase your chicken from a good butcher or supermarket and the meat is usually quite tender to begin with. As for the flavour…

I promise you that even if you only have a half hour to marinate your meat, you will still love it. This marinade works so well and tastes amazing.

Chicken tikka masala anyone? I love the smoky flavour barbecued chicken tikka adds to my curries.

On its own chicken tikka is great. It’s also delicious in these curries!

• • Chicken Korma
  • Chicken Madras
  • Chicken Dhansak
  • Chicken Chilli Garlic
  • Chicken Patia 
    

    Some of the ingredients you need to have on your list.

     

    

    Free range chicken is always best!

     

    

    The spices you need.

    I love to cook outdoors on the barbecue and have barbecued many different cuisines. Indian grilling and barbecue is different to other styles I have tried.

    

    Love the spice dabba.

     

    

    Chicken marinating in the lime juice and salt and pepper.

    Most Indian recipes call for two different marinades.

    First citrus juice like lime or lemon juice is rubbed into the meat with a little salt and garlic and ginger paste. This is the first marinade.

    The first marinade soaks into the meat giving it fantastic flavour. The problem with citrus, however is that it actually cooks the meat.

    No, you can’t eat it because it needs to be brought up to heat. But it still begins the cooking process.

    Think about what happens when you bite into a lime or lemon. You perk up right?

    That is exactly what happens to the meat. It needs something to stop the cooking process and that is dairy, in the form of yoghurt, cream cheese and/or cream.

    

    Add the red food colouring powder (if using) to the first marinade.

    Food colouring is often added directly to the meat. If you read the labels of food colouring powder, you will see that you aren’t supposed to do that.

    Regardless, it is done a restaurant all over the world. Food colouring has not flavour so it is optional.

    I rarely use it for this reason but I have nothing against using it.

    

    Whisk the second marinade ingredients together and allow to marinate for 3 to 48 hours. The longer the better.

    Dairy is the best natural tenderiser and it counters the cooking effect of the citrus juice.

    I give curry/tandoori classes weekly and as the classes are only 4 hours long, we have to marinate the meat and cook it within that time.

    It still comes out of the tandoor tasting amazing but for optimum results, let you chicken marinate over night or even for 48 hours if time permits but don’t not make this recipe because you are short of time.

    

    Kebab grills are perfect for making chicken tikka.

     

    

    Cooking on skewers chars the exterior while keeping the meat so moist and tender.

     

    

    So good!

     

    

    Dig in!

    Looking for more tandoori chicken tikka recipes? You really should try these too!

    Pakistani Easy Tandoori Chicken Tikka
    Soola Chicken Tikka Kebabs (The famous green chicken tikka)
    Tandoori Lamb Tikka
    Tandoori Salmon Tikka
    Hariyali Green Chicken Tikka Kebabs
    Stovetop Tandoori Chicken

    Continue to Content

    Yield: 4 - 6

    How To Make Chicken Tikka

    

    Print

    This chicken tikka recipe gets great results. It tastes just like the fantastic chicken tikka you find at the best curry houses.

    Prep Time 10 minutes

    Cook Time 25 minutes

    Total Time 35 minutes

    Ingredients

    • 1 kilo (2 lbs.) chicken breasts - cut into bite sized pieces (tikka)
    • Juice of two lemons
    • 1 tablespoon salt
    • 250ml (1 cup) plain yogurt
    • 2 tablespoons garlic puree
    • 1 tablespoon ginger puree
    • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
    • 1 tablespoon ground coriander
    • 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
    • 1 teaspoon citric acid powder
    • 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
    • 1 teaspoon salt (more or less to taste)
    • 2 green chillies finely chopped
    • 1 bunch of coriander leaves finely chopped

    Instructions

    1. Place the chicken tikka in a large bowl and squeeze the lemon juice over them and sprinkle with a little salt.
    2. Now, whisk the second marinade ingredients together and pour it over the chicken.
    3. Cover the chicken pieces with the marinade ensuring the chicken tikka are completely coated with the marinade.
    4. Allow to marinaded for six hours or up to 48 hours - the longer the better. If you don't have time to marinate the chicken, 30 minutes or so will still be good.
    5. When ready to cook, light a barbecue. Gas barbecues will work but I prefer the flavour of charcoal barbecues.
    6. You are ready to grill when you can hold your hand two inches above the grill without it being unbearably hot.
    7. Cook the chicken tikka on skewers turning occasionally until the chicken is cooked through and the edges are blackened.

    Recommended Products

    As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    • 
      Pestle and Mortar
    • 
      I.O.Shen Chefs Knife
    • 
      Joseph Joseph cutting board
    • 
      Thüros BBQ with Skewers
    • 
      Kamado Joe Classic BBQ
    • 
      Waring Spice Grinder

    Did you like this recipe?

    Please join me on Facebook where I share all my latest recipes and videos. Just click that Facebook icon on the left and let's get to know each other!

    There are many different great chicken tikka recipes out there. Here is one of mine. Enjoy.