Tandoori Chicken

We recently got invited to dinner by our cousin Mark, as he wanted to celebrate his birthday. He chose a really great Indian restaurant in Brookfield, called Taste of India. I never even knew this place existed as it was tucked away in a strip mall. Their menu was pretty killer, and as I have only had Indian food on a few occasions, I let Mark do the ordering. He was well versed in Indian food as he lived in the New York city area for the majority of his life, and Indian food was abundant.

We sampled everything from samosas, nan, chicken curry, and a great spinach dish, only to name a few. Due to this experience, I have not been able to shake the aroma, and the flavors out of my mind. I truly loved the food, and you know what that means. The only true Indian dish that I know how to make is Tandoori chicken, and this my opportunity to make a killer batch of it.

Tandoori chicken is a common Indian dish, typically a deep yellow or red color, and either baked in a very hot oven, or grilled. The seasonings are spot on, and the intensity of the flavors is one that keeps you coming back for more. The smells are out of this world as well.

At first, I was going to go with just a dry rub, but as I had some yogurt laying around, I decided to incorporate that into the flavoring as well. The combination of the spices and yogurt, need to marinate the skinless chicken pieces for at least 8 hours, or better yet, over night.

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, cut into pieces, skin removed
• 1/2 cup of plain yogurt
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tbsp minced ginger
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tsp coriander ground coriander
• 1/4 cup of diced white onion
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground clove
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 tsp tumeric powder
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 6 chili bird peppers, stems removed
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• white rice, cooked, preferably basmati

Get your food processor out. Add in everything but the chicken, oil, and rice. Turn it on medium and let it ride for a couple of minutes. Scrape down the sides, and turn it on again for about 30 seconds. You end up with a really killer marinade that looks great, and smells heavenly.

Get a large ziplock bag out. Fork your chicken pieces as this will help the marinade set into the chicken pieces. Place in the ziplock bag, and add in the marinade. Seal, removing as much air as possible, and place in a bowl in the refrigerator, overnight.

Before you are ready to cook, place the bowl of chicken on the counter and let it come close to room temperature. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil, and place the chicken on the baking sheet. Drizzle vegetable oil on the chicken pieces. Place in the oven for nearly 30 minutes, or until the juices run clear.

Serve on top of basmati rice, with a lime wedge, cilantro, or sliced onions. Not only will you love the flavors of this chicken, but the color is really nice as well.