Tandoori Chicken

By lorik

Each recipe yields between 2-4 servings

Ingredients

• Aarti's Tandoori Chicken:
• 5 cloves
• 2 dried guajillo chiles (if you can't find these, then use 2 chiles de arbol, and more paprika for color)
• 2 green cardamom, husks discarded, seeds retained
• 1 black cardamom, husk discarded, seeds retained
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
• 1 cup whole fat plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup peanut or canola oil
• 2 tablespoons malt vinegar or lime juice
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-inch thumb ginger, peeled and minced
• 1 packet boneless skinless chicken thighs (1 1/2 pounds usually)
• 1 teaspoon honey
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Couple of extra limes, for garnish
• Variation from Food & Wine:
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 tablespoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup fat-free Greek-style yogurt
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 12 chicken drumsticks (about 4 1/4 pounds)
• 3/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 3 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• John MacLamore:
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 8 chicken thighs, skin removed
• 2 tsp olive oil, for brushing
• Variation from Cooks Country:
• 1 3/4 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1/4 cup lime juice (2 limes)
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• Salt and pepper
• 3 pounds bone-in chicken pieces (split breasts cut in half, drumsticks, and/or thighs), trimmed
• 4 naan breads

Details

Adapted from cookscountry.com

Preparation

Step 1

Aarti's:
To make the marinade, toast the cloves, whole chiles, both types of cardamom seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds and fenugreek seeds in a cast-iron skillet until fragrant, 3 minutes or so, shaking the pan. Then, pour the spices into a spice grinder and grind them until you get a fine powder.

In large bowl, whisk together the spice mixture you just made with the yogurt, oil, malt vinegar, salt, ground cinnamon, paprika, turmeric, cayenne pepper, garlic and ginger until well combined. It should smell amazing! Taste and adjust with more salt if it needs it.

Reserve 1/3 cup of the marinade and set aside; you're going to make a sauce out of this reserved marinade.

Prick the chicken thighs with a fork. Add the thighs to the rest of the marinade, and toss to coat. Marinate at least 1 hour in the fridge, and at most overnight.

When you're ready to cook, line a baking sheet with foil, and turn your broiler on. Place each chicken thigh on the baking sheet, making sure each one is coated with the marinade, but isn't swimming in it. Cook the chicken thighs under the broiler until starting to blacken, about 5 minutes. Then turn the oven to 350, and cook until a meat thermometer inserted in the meatiest part of the thigh registers 160 degrees F, another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven.

While the chicken is cooking, pour the reserved marinade into a small saucepan, along with 1/2 cup water and the honey. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-low heat, whisking all the time. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and pour into a small bowl or gravy boat for serving.

Serve the chicken thighs on a platter with a fresh squeeze of lime and a drizzle of the sauce.

Food & Wine:
Preheat the oven to 450°. Set a rack on each of 2 large baking sheets. In a small skillet, toast the paprika, garam masala, cumin, coriander and turmeric over moderately low heat, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer the spices to a medium bowl and cool slightly. Stir in the ginger, garlic, yogurt, lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of the oil and season with salt and pepper.

Make 2 or 3 slashes in each drumstick. In a large bowl, toss the chicken with 2 tablespoons of the canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Add the spiced yogurt and rub it onto the chicken. Arrange the chicken on the racks, leaving 2 inches between the pieces. Roast for 45 minutes, turning occasionally, until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through. Light the broiler and broil the chicken 6 inches from the heat for about 5 minutes, until lightly charred and crisp.

In a small bowl, stir the cilantro, shallot, vinegar and the remaining 1/4 cup of oil; season with salt. Serve with the chicken.

John MacLamore:
In a large bowl mix the salt, garlic, lemon juice, yogurt, turmeric, garam masala, cayenne pepper and chicken, cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Load the wood tray with one small handful of wood chips and preheat the smoker to 225. Remove chicken from marinade and place on rack inside smoker. Smoke for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until thickest part of chicken reaches 165. Brush chicken with oil several times in the last 30 minutes of cooking.

Variation from Cooks Country:
1. Whisk 1 cup yogurt, 2 tablespoons lime juice, garlic, ginger, garam masala, and 1/2 teaspoon salt together in large bowl. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and, using sharp knife, cut through skin to make three 1/2-inch-deep slits across each piece. Season with salt and pepper, transfer to yogurt mixture, and toss to coat.

2. Mix remaining 3/4 cup yogurt, remaining 2 tablespoons lime juice, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in small bowl until smooth; set sauce aside.

3. Grill chicken over medium fire until breasts register 160 degrees and drumsticks/thighs register 175 degrees, about 12 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to platter. Grill naan until warmed through, about 1 minute per side. Serve chicken with naan and sauce.