Appetizer

Tandoori Chicken

Name: Tandoori Chicken
Total time: 6 h 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 1 kg chicken, skinless, slashed deeply all over; 5 tbsp lemon juice; 3 tbsp red chilli powder (adjust to taste); 0.25 tsp turmeric powder; 200 g hung curd or thick plain yogurt; 3 tsp ginger-garlic paste; 2 tsp tandoori masala; 2 tsp cumin powder; 3 tsp coriander powder; 1.5 tsp kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), crushed; 1.5 tsp garam masala; 1 tsp gram flour (besan); 1 tsp mustard oil (or butter); 10 g fine sea salt (about 1% of the chicken), added just before roasting

The trick is the double marination — a first coat of lemon and chilli that works into the slashes, then the full yogurt marinade that sits overnight. By the time it goes into the oven, the spices have become the chicken. Serve with green chutney and thinly sliced onion rings.

40 min (+ 6 hr marinate)Serves 4 medium–hot

Method

Slash the chicken deeply all over with a sharp knife — the cuts should reach the bone. In a bowl mix the lemon juice, red chilli powder, and turmeric. Coat the chicken thoroughly, working the mixture into the slashes. Cover and rest for 30 minutes .
In a clean bowl combine the hung curd, ginger-garlic paste, tandoori masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, kasuri methi, garam masala, gram flour, and mustard oil. Mix into a smooth marinade.
Add the first-marinated chicken to the yogurt marinade and coat well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4–5 hours, overnight if possible.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 220°C. Add salt to the chicken just before it goes in — salting earlier draws out moisture and dries the meat.
Place the chicken on a wire rack over a foil-lined tray. Roast for 20–25 minutes , then turn each piece and roast for another 15–20 minutes until the edges are charred. Don't judge by colour or "juices run clear" alone — probe the thickest piece, which must read an internal 74 °C / 165 °F with no pink at the bone. Cooking time varies by oven — watch it closely the first time.
Rest for 5 minutes . Serve warm with dhaniya chutney and thinly sliced raw onion rings.

Cook's note. Hung curd (yogurt drained overnight through a muslin cloth) clings to the chicken better than regular yogurt and produces a more intense crust. If you can't get it, thick Greek yogurt is the closest substitute. The gram flour in the marinade also helps the coating grip and char.

The story

Tandoori chicken takes its name from the tandoor, a cylindrical clay oven that reaches temperatures of 480°C. The dish was popularised at Moti Mahal restaurant in Delhi's Daryaganj in the 1950s, where it became the defining dish of North Indian restaurant cooking. The marinade — yogurt, chilli, and aromatic spices — was designed for clay-oven heat; a home oven at maximum temperature gets close enough.