(Not) Chicken tikka masala

Ever since moving to the US, I started trying (and liking) the many Indian restaurants which exist around here. One of my favorite dishes is the Chicken tikka masala, a dish made with chicken chunks in a creamy sauce. But I always thought that it would be hard to make, so when I found one recipe for that dish which was supposed to be easy (“Quick Chicken Tikka Masala”) I decided to give it a try. And… it definitely wasn’t the same thing as I had tried – it tasted good, but I don’t think I can call that by the original name.

The chicken was not cubed, but that wasn’t the main issue (I could easily have done that myself). The sauce, instead of the rich, creamy sauce I was used to, was a chunky, lighter version. Maybe using cream instead of yogurt, and possibly not blending the sauce caused that, so some later time I’ll have to try a different recipe to see if it will work out better. At the end it was tasty, as I mentioned before, and indeed quite quick, but it didn’t meet the expectations that I had for that dish.

Ingredients (for 4 people):

1 lb. chicken tenders

1/2 cup flour

4 tsp. garam masala (a blend of spices used in many Indian dishes; I found it in my local supermarket)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. turmeric

1 large onion, finely chopped

6 garlic cloves, minced

4 tbsp. olive oil

4 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced

1/3 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup parsley for decoration

Stir the garam masala, salt and turmeric. Sprinkle the chicken with 1/2 of the mixture and reserve the rest. Dredge the chicken on the flour, then cook it on a large skillet with 2 tbsp. of the oil over medium heat, about 2 minutes per side until brown, then reserve.

Heat the remaining oil on the pan, then add the onions, garlic and ginger, cooking until they start to brown, stirring frequently. Add the remaining spice mix and stir. Add the tomatoes, and bring it to a simmer, stirring and breaking the tomatoes. Cook for another 5 minutes, until it thickens.

Stir in the cream and the chicken. Cook over medium heat until the chicken is cooked through.

Garnish with the parsley, then serve with white rice.

Enjoy!