Tandoori Chicken - Microwave Recipe
Yesterday we went grocery shopping to stock up for the coming month. And I picked up a packet of 6 skinless chicken thigh pieces. Sid is very fussy about his meat. He does not eat red meat except for the occasional mutton curry or biryani (which has to be well cooked and home-made, by the way), hates sea food, and likes his chicken well-done. Oh, and did I mention that he is that rare species that hates chicken leg pieces? Yes, he is a breast man out-n-out!
So I bought the chicken thighs with some trepidation. But they were well-cut and looked fresh, so I decided chicken it would be for dinner! Once at home, Sid claimed he wasn’t hungry enough for a full fledged meal of chicken curry and rotis. So after much searching in many files, I finally found the user manual of my microwave and decided to attempt grilled/tandoori chicken. I must admit that I have had the microwave for more than a year now, but have never really used it for anything except re-heating food! Yes yes, I know… a real waste. But better late than never!
So Tandoori chicken it was, and for the masala, I just went with instinct and marinated the chicken pieces. 5min later I checked online just to be sure, and realized I hadn’t added yoghurt/curd! So in that went. It took about 1hour marination time and 40min cooking time in all, and the result was lip-smacking I must admit! Though I have a feeling I over-cooked the chicken a bit and it could have been more moist than it turned out to be.
For the Tandoori Masala:
Turmeric – 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder – 1 heaped tbsp
Coriander Powder - 1 heaped tbsp
Cumin Powder - 1 heaped tbsp
Cinnamon Powder – 1 tsp
Powdered cloves – 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 heaped tbsp
Salt – 1 tbsp
Lemon juice
Yoghurt – 2-3 tbsp
Red food colouring - 2 pinches
Chicken pieces – 3
Wash and clean the chicken pieces and make 3-4 diagonal slits in each piece with a sharp knife. Mix all the ingredients of the Tandoori masala into a thick paste and rub the pieces well with the masala, making sure it goes into the slits. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Transfer the marinated pieces of chicken into a microwave safe dish. If your microwave has “Grilled Chicken Pieces” in the Easy Cook or Express Cook options, then just set that option and punch in the weight of the chicken. In my case, 3 pieces of chicken came to approximately 400gms.
If you don’t have this option available, then set it on Grill or Power/Grill Combination 2 for around 20min. After 10min, turn the pieces over and resume the grilling.
After 20min, the chicken will be done. Now to give it the charred, tandoori effect, transfer the pieces onto the grill provided with your Microwave (Pic below), and grill for about 3-4min.
So I bought the chicken thighs with some trepidation. But they were well-cut and looked fresh, so I decided chicken it would be for dinner! Once at home, Sid claimed he wasn’t hungry enough for a full fledged meal of chicken curry and rotis. So after much searching in many files, I finally found the user manual of my microwave and decided to attempt grilled/tandoori chicken. I must admit that I have had the microwave for more than a year now, but have never really used it for anything except re-heating food! Yes yes, I know… a real waste. But better late than never!
So Tandoori chicken it was, and for the masala, I just went with instinct and marinated the chicken pieces. 5min later I checked online just to be sure, and realized I hadn’t added yoghurt/curd! So in that went. It took about 1hour marination time and 40min cooking time in all, and the result was lip-smacking I must admit! Though I have a feeling I over-cooked the chicken a bit and it could have been more moist than it turned out to be.
For the Tandoori Masala:
Turmeric – 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder – 1 heaped tbsp
Coriander Powder - 1 heaped tbsp
Cumin Powder - 1 heaped tbsp
Cinnamon Powder – 1 tsp
Powdered cloves – 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 heaped tbsp
Salt – 1 tbsp
Lemon juice
Yoghurt – 2-3 tbsp
Red food colouring - 2 pinches
Chicken pieces – 3
Wash and clean the chicken pieces and make 3-4 diagonal slits in each piece with a sharp knife. Mix all the ingredients of the Tandoori masala into a thick paste and rub the pieces well with the masala, making sure it goes into the slits. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Transfer the marinated pieces of chicken into a microwave safe dish. If your microwave has “Grilled Chicken Pieces” in the Easy Cook or Express Cook options, then just set that option and punch in the weight of the chicken. In my case, 3 pieces of chicken came to approximately 400gms.
If you don’t have this option available, then set it on Grill or Power/Grill Combination 2 for around 20min. After 10min, turn the pieces over and resume the grilling.
After 20min, the chicken will be done. Now to give it the charred, tandoori effect, transfer the pieces onto the grill provided with your Microwave (Pic below), and grill for about 3-4min.
Sprinkle some Chaat Masala on top and serve hot with some raw onions and a wedge of lemon, or some mint chutney.
