Thursday, May 19, 2011

Grilled Tandoori Chicken

In preparation for summer, we bought a new bbq a couple weekends ago and have been trying out new recipes. This Tandoori Chicken recipe is fantastic and I'll definitely be making it again. I failed to read the recipe all the way through and missed some steps at the end but oh well, it was still super yummy.
The yogurt based marinade makes the chicken tender and juicy. I served it with brown rice and sliced mango. Has anyone had a mango lassi? I was thinking of making it to drink with this recipe next time.
Tandoori Chicken Recipe
Williams & Sonoma Complete Grilling Cookbook

For The sauce
1 cucumber
1 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

For The Chicken
3/4 cup plain yogurt
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon peeled and grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 whole chicken cut in 4 or 6 pieces. If you can buy skinless, even better but the bones need to be in.

To prepare the sauce, peel the cucumber, halve it lengthwise, then scrape out the seeds. Cut the cucumber crosswise into thin slices. In a bowl, stir together the cucumber slices, yogurt, cilantro, salt, and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate until serving.

To prepare the chicken, in a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of the oil, the garlic, ginger, curry powder, turmeric, salt and cayenne; set aside.
Remove and discard the skin from the chicken. Using a sharp knife, score the chicken meat 1/2 inch deep at 1 inch intervals. Coat chicken with the marinade evenly, working it into the cuts. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight.
Prepare grill.
(These next steps I totally forgot to do. We just grilled the chicken as we normally would but if you follow these next steps, let me know how it turns out).
Remove the chicken from the marinade. Scrape most of the marinade from the chicken. Boil the remaining marinade and reserve. Rub the chicken with the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Place on the grill rack and grill, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Turn and brush with some of the reserved marinade. Grill for 10 minutes longer, then again turn and brush with the marinade. Cover the grill, open the vents halfway, and cool until opaque throughout and the juices run clear, about 15 minutes longer.
Transfer to a warmed platter and serve at once. with the cucumber-yogurt sauce.
Enjoy!
Do you have any fantastic grilling recipes to share?

6 comments:

  1. i suck at grilling.... mostly because i live in a closet that also doubles as a kitchen and no indoor grilling is allowed (dammit)

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  2. Mango lassi is always always the partner with Indian food, somehow! Whenever I visit an Indian restaurant, they always ask you if you want the mango lassi. It's not easy to find a good mango lassi, mind you, and though I am not a fan, I am surrounded by everyone who go gaga over mangoes!!:P

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  3. This sounds great! I've never used yogurt on chicken- sounds totally interesting. And now I feel the need to run out and buy a mango- so delicious!!

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  4. this looks great! i need to make some of the mango/rice dessert dishes they make with coconut milk too! those are SO good.

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  5. A beautiful, flavorful summer meal.
    I can't say that I have ever had a mango lassie.

    Have a great weekend.
    Velva

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  6. Yum! This looks TO DIE FOR. Love tandoori. Your recipe is rockin.

    I've been grilling pizza like crazy.. you can see one of my recipes here!:
    http://blog.shoprite.com/recipes/the-best-dern-pizza-this-side-of-the-mississippi

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